Overview of deregulation measures; Immigration rules and labor law roundtable;
Personal data protection; Ukrainian business luncheon & exhibition, Houston, TX
U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC),
Washington, D.C., Wed, June 1, 2011

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Return to Index by clicking on Return to Index at the end of each article

1. UKRAINE: OVERVIEW OF THE DEREGULATION MEASURES
Legal Alert, RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, May 26, 2011

2. UKRAINIAN IMMIGRATION RULES AND LABOR LAW ROUNDTABLE IN KYIV ON TUESDAY, JUNE 7, 2011
Alex Frishberg, Frishberg & Partners, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, June 1, 2011

3. UPDATE ON PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION REGIME IN UKRAINE
Legal Alert, RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, May 27, 2011

4. UKRAINIAN BUSINESS & INVESTMENT LUNCHEON & ROUNDTABLE," AND OPENING OF THE "ANCIENT UKRAINE: GOLDEN TREASURES & LOST CIVILIZATIONS AND SACRED IMAGES EXHIBITION"
Final call for registrations for the major events in Houston
Invitation: Friday, June 3, luncheon, 12:00 to 2:30 p.m.; VIP Exhibition opening Houston Museum of National Science, 5:00 p.m., Houston, Texas
U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Wash, D.C., Wed, June 1, 2011
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1. UKRAINE: OVERVIEW OF THE DEREGULATION MEASURES

Legal Alert, RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, May 26, 2011

KYIV - The Government of Ukraine – the Verkhovna Rada (the "Parliament") and the Cabinet of Ministers - have recently developed and enacted a number of long-awaited measures in the sphere of deregulation of business activity and improvement of the regulatory regime (customs, public procurement). A special dedicated authority – the Cabinet of Ministers Deregulation Assignee – was established in February 2011 to oversee deregulation.

As a result of these efforts, between 2010 and 2011, the average Ease of Doing Business in Ukraine rank has improved by 2 points (from 147th to 145th place out of 183 economies), noting that rank in category Starting Business has improved by 18 points (from 136th to 118th place out of 183 economies)[1].

We offer below a brief overview of the key business deregulation measures pending or enacted within the past several months.

I. Enacted Deregulation Measures

- Cancellation of Licenses for Certain Types of Economic Activity:

The list of business activities subject to licensing was shortened by 24 positions, removing inter alia:

• cargo carriage services (except for dangerous cargoes) by air, river, sea, motor and railway transport;
• pesticide and agricultural chemicals production (plant growth regulators only);
• design, production, use, operation, certification tests, subject-oriented research, expert examination, importation/exportation of crypt systems and crypt-based information protection systems;
• design, production, and certification tests of holographic protection elements.

Relevant amendments were introduced to a number of Laws by the Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Restricting State Regulation of Business Activities” No. 2608-VI dated 19 October 2011 and enacted on 16 November 2010.

- A Single Notification for Registration as a Single Payer of Contributions to State Funds:

As of 1 January 2011 the Pension Fund issues a single notification regarding registration of the legal entity as a single contributions payer, based on the information it receives from the Single State Registry of Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs (“Single State Registry”) upon incorporation of a legal entity.

Before this measure was enacted, a newly incorporated legal entity had to be registered with four separate State Funds, have four notifications of registration therewith and pay contributions and report thereto:

• the Pension Fund;
• the State Fund for Social Insurance Against Unemployment;
• the State Fund for Social Insurance Against Temporary Loss of the Ability to Work;
• the State Fund of Ukraine for Social Insurance Against Job Accidents and Professional Diseases.

This measure was introduced by the Law “On Collecting and Accounting of the Single Contribution to Mandatory State Social Insurance” No. 2464-VI dated 8 July 2010 and by subsequent Regulations of the Pension Fund Board No. 21-6 dated 27 September 2010.

- Cancellation of Special Permits of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Corporate Seals:

The long-standing requirement that a special permit had to be obtained from the Ministry of Internal Affairs in order to manufacture (or replace, or destroy) every corporate seal was abolished. This welcome measure will save businesses up to 400 UAH and up to one week of time per corporate seal.

This new rule became effective starting 21 February 2011 and was enacted by Cabinet of Ministers' Resolution No. 1216 On Amendments to Permits System Regulations dated 29 December 2010, and by subsequent Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Order No. 5 dated 11 January 2011 On Cancellation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Order No. 7 dated 11 January 1999.

Moreover, the Government intends to abolish the mandatory requirement for corporate seals in general (please see section II below), which will certainly facilitate and modernize business operations.

- Cancellation of State Registration Certificates for Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs:

The State Registration Certificate was a mandatory document confirming the existence of a legal entity and attesting its registration (incorporation). Following cancellation of this document, Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs will attest their existence by an excerpt from the Single State Registry (earlier this document attested the company's existence at the relevant date and was valid only for 30 days), which can be obtained via State Registrar Offices and no longer has an expiration term.

This measure was enacted by Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Cancelling the State Registration Certificate of Legal Entity and Individual-Entrepreneur” No.3205-VI and is effective as of 7 May 2011.

- Introducing Electronic State Registration of Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs:

Electronic registration will become available for State registration (incorporation) of Legal Entities and Individuals - Entrepreneurs, as well as for reservation of names of Legal Entities.

This measure takes effect as of 14 August 2011 and was included in the Law “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On the State Registration of Legal Entities and Individuals - Entrepreneurs Concerning Electronic Registration” No. 2609-V adopted on 19 October 2010.

Please see our Legal Alert dated 23 November 2010 for more details http://www.rulg.com/leg_alerts.asp

- Registration of Legal Entities Based on a Model Charter:

According to this measure, an option to use a Model Charter will become available during incorporation of a Legal Entity. At the same time, the founders of a Legal Entity will still have an option to develop their own original Charter. This measure would simplify the incorporation process for those founders who opt to use a Model Charter, but certainly such Model Charter might not be suitable for every business. The Model Charter will be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers.

This measure is introduced in the Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Introducing the State Registration of Legal Entities on the Basis of a Model Charter”, which was adopted by the Parliament on 21 April 2011 and signed by the President. This Law introduces amendments to the Commercial Code, Civil Code, Law “On State Registration of Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs”, Law “On Economic Societies”. The Law will be enacted 3 months after official publication thereof.

- Abolishing Minimal Authorized Capital for Limited Liability Companies and Simplification of Certain State Registration Procedures:

The new measures include:

cancelling the minimal Authorized Capital for Limited Liability Companies;

defining the procedure for notifying creditors regarding decrease of the Limited Liability Company's Authorized Capital (creditors shall be notified by a letter within 30 days after the relevant decision is made);

filing with the State Registrars simple copies instead of notarized copies or notarized originals of certain documents in order to introduce amendments to the Single State Registry.

The above measures are introduced by the Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Simplifying the Entrepreneurship Initiation Procedure”, which was adopted by the Parliament on 21 April 2011 and signed by the President. The Law will be enacted 10 days after official publication thereof.

- Introducing Electronic Customs Declarations:

On 5 April 2011 the State Customs Agency started a pilot project of accepting electronic declarations. The introduction of this procedure will accelerate the processes of customs control and clearance and harmonize it with the international standards of electronic data exchange concerning customs clearance of goods, as well as reduce to a minimum the interaction with the customs officer thus preventing corruption.

The conditions for electronic declarations are approved by order № 216 of the State Customs Agency dated 17 March 2011. The Order simplifies the procedure of admitting enterprises to the electronic declarations, conducting its Register and provides for inclusion of customs brokers into the Register.

II. Pending Deregulation Measures

- Simplification of Termination (Liquidation) of a Legal Entity or Individual-Entrepreneur:

Ukraine has a very burdensome regime for liquidation of a business (Legal Entities or Individuals-Entrepreneurs), which requires a pre-liquidation audit by tax authorities. In practice businesses have to wait for months and sometimes years for such audits.

The new rules for termination (liquidation) of a Legal Entity or Individual Entrepreneur include:

• he defined timeframe for relevant tax and Pension Fund authorities to notify the State Registrar about possibility or impossibility to start the pre-liquidation audit or their objections to the liquidation;
• if no objections are received by relevant State Registrar within defined timeframe, a principle of tacit consent to state registration of entity's termination is introduced.

The above rules are stipulated in the Bill “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Simplifying the Procedures for Terminating Legal Entities and Individuals-Entrepreneurs”, which was adopted by the Parliament as a basis, and after the second reading on 12 May 2011 was sent for further development to be followed by repeated consideration in the second reading.

- Cancellation of a Corporate Seal as a Mandatory Attribute:

Ukraine has an archaic requirement for a corporate seal as a mandatory attribute of every legal entity. In order to be valid most of the documents, including contracts, need to be attested by the corporate seal. Abolishing these requirements would be a welcoming development considerably simplifying and modernizing business operations.

The following bills pending at the Parliament provide for abolishing mandatory requirement for a corporate seal and would make it optional:

Bill “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Establishing the Principle of carrying out Business Activities by Private Law Subjects Without Using Seals” initiated by the Cabinet of Ministers, which was registered with the Parliament, considered, but rejected and sent for further development due to conflicts with existing legislation.
An alternative Bill with the same name, but slightly different content, initiated by a People's Deputy who represents the Party of Regions, which was not considered yet.

- Reducing Number of Documents required for Customs Clearance:

The Government plans to reduce by 70 % (from 65 to 20) the quantity of the permits, necessary for customs clearance, in particular - sanitary-and-hygienic conclusions, phyto- and veterinary inspection certificates, etc. To clear cargoes, applicants should present to the customs only the documents, which are the basis for clearing goods through customs and for charging taxes. These measures are planned to take effect in the summer of 2011.

An Interagency working group (composed of representatives of the State Customs Agency and the State Committee on Industrial and Regulatory Policy and Entrepreneurship) will conduct the work on the reduction of the number of documents to be presented for the customs clearance, suggest relevant proposals and elaborate changes to legal acts.

The reduction of the number of documents for the customs control only means that these documents are no longer necessary for the customs clearance. The regulatory documents, which are still necessary for sales of imported goods in the territory of Ukraine, can be obtained after the customs clearance.

- Introducing Electronic Public Procurement:

The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (the “AMCU”) plans to introduce electronic public procurement in Ukraine.

According to the AMCU, the electronic system provides for a possibility of reducing corruption by excluding the human factor. The tender participant is not identified to the customer, and only at the latest stage the participant is revealed and the winner is determined. Specific terms of the introduction of the electronic public procurement system have not been determined yet. Besides, there may be a problem with application of electronic signatures, which are not yet widely used in Ukraine.

Bill № 8310 on amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Realization of Public Procurement”, which introduces electronic public procurement (state purchases), was registered in the Parliament. The Bill follows the trend discussed by the Heads of antimonopoly bodies of the CIS countries at a special meeting of an Interstate Council of Antimonopoly Policy, which took place within the framework of the VII All-Russian forum-exhibition STATE ORDER-2011 on 23 – 25 March 2011 in Moscow.

The Council decided to create a working group on the implementation of the electronic public procurement and summarize recommendations on antimonopoly policy and legislative improvements in the sphere of the state purchases for the CIS countries.

[1] www.doingbusiness.org data as of 18 May 2011

INFORMATION: RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Olimpiysky Center, 72, Velyka Vasylkivska Street Suite 14, Kiev 03150, Ukraine, Phone: [380] (44) 207-1060; Fax: [380](44) 207-1064 and 4056 Mansion Dr., N.W. , Washington, D.C. 20007, USA Phone: [1] (202) 338-1182, Fax: [1] (202) 338-4237

Disclaimer: The content of this Legal Alert is not legal advice, but a general informational summary of the law. Resource to qualified legal counsel is always required for legal advice. Failure to make timely inquiries of legal counsel may cause important legal deadlines to be missed.
NOTE: The Ukrainian Legal Group is a member of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Washington, D.C., www.usubc.org.
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2. UKRAINIAN IMMIGRATION RULES AND LABOR LAW ROUNDTABLE IN KYIV ON TUESDAY, JUNE 7, 2011

Alex Frishberg, Frishberg & Partners, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, June 1, 2011

KYIV - The Ukrainian political establishment may have changed, but foreign employees’ mass confusion about their immigration status remains firmly intact. To clarify this rather murky area of law, the law offices of Frishberg & Partners are pleased to invite you to a round table on “Ukrainian Immigration Rules and Labor Law,” which will take place on June 7, 2011, from 3:30 - 6:30 pm at the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (33 Velyka Zhytomyrska Street, 4th Floor), in Kyiv.

The speakers and their presentation topics are as follows:

• Scott Brown, Esq.: “Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Ukrainian Immigration and Labor (Law and Practice)”
• Sergei Potabenko, Esq.: “Administrative Aspect of Immigration Rules (Registrations and Required Documents)”
• Inna Ignatenko, Chief Accountant: “Applicable Taxation and Practical Suggestions”

The last such roundtable was held on July 9, 2009, which included a lively discussion among the attending guests. We encourage you to obtain that transcript as a background to the upcoming event (at http://www.amazon.com/New-and-Improved-Ukrainian-Immigration-Rules-ebook/dp/B004T3TWAS/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_4).

Please let us know at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you wish to attend the upcoming round table, and we will be delighted to put your name on the attendance list. Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you soon!

INFORMATION: Alex Frishberg, 10 Gorky Street, Suite 8, 01004, Kiev, Ukraine, Tel: 585-8464, 289-4952; Fax: 235-6342, 289-1406, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , www.frishberg.com.

NOTE: Frishberg & Partners is a member of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Washington, D.C., www.usubc.org.

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3. UPDATE ON PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION REGIME IN UKRAINE

Legal Alert, RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, May 27, 2011

KYIV - Effective 01 January 2011, the Law On Personal Data Protection (the “Law") took effect introducing requirements for the gathering, processing, storing, and transferring of personal data (please see our Legal Alert dated 19 November 2010 http://www.rulg.com/leg_alerts.asp).

Scope of Applicability

The Law is applicable to all owners and processors of personal data databases (except for physical persons, who create a database for personal use, journalists, who carry out their professional duties and creative figures implementing creative activity).

The Law provides for establishment of the State Register of Personal Databases, administered by the “authorized state body on data protection”, and stipulates that personal databases are subject to mandatory state registration according to the prescribed procedure.

Important Caveats

1. Since the Law will be fully functional only after all relevant regulations are adopted and take effect, and only a part of such regulations have been created, especially in the important area of registration of personal databases, creating the scope for inescapable technical breach of the Law;
2. Owing to the complexity and ambiguity of some provisions, recourse to formal legal advice should be obtained well in advance of any plan for compliance measures within an organization.

Current Personal Data Protection Regime

The latest regulations in the sphere of personal data protection comprise the following:

1. Regulation of State Service of Ukraine on Personal Data Protection approved by the Decree N 390/2011 of the President of Ukraine (effective 6 April 2011): State Service of Ukraine on Personal Data Protection is the central executive body which is directed and coordinated by the Cabinet of Ministers through the Minister of Justice of Ukraine. State Service on Personal Data Protection is authorized to:

• make proposals for state policy on personal data protection;
• implement state policy on personal data protection;
• perform control over compliance with legislation on personal data protection;
• implement international legal cooperation in the sphere of personal data protection.

1. Letter of the State Committee on Land Resources N 4280/21/11-11 dated 24 March 2011: establishes rules for filling out information on adjacent owners.
2. Letter of National Bank of Ukraine N 18-311/695-2160 dated 08 April 2011: order of processing of personal data being bank secret is adopted by the National Bank of Ukraine. Once personal data protection regulations are adopted by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, authorized government agency for financial monitoring and the National Bank of Ukraine will amend existing rules of storage, protection, use and disclosure of bank secret.

Court practice

Overview of court decisions for period January-May 2011 indicates that judges already make references to the Law in decisions concerning circulation of information. But still Ukrainian court practice does not yet has cases specifically in the sphere of personal data protection.

Liability for Violations in the Sphere of Personal Data Protection in Ukraine

On 3 February 2011, Ukrainian Parliament adopted in the first reading a Bill introducing administrative and criminal liability in the area of personal data protection, namely:

1. administrative liability for evasion of personal database registration, creation of or work with a personal database before its state registration, and breach of regime of accessing personal data resulting in fines in amount USD 638-4,250.
2. criminal liability for unlawful gathering, storage, usage and distribution of personal data without the person's consent is subject to fines in amount USD 1,700 – 4,250, compulsory community service or imprisonment.

We note that the State Register of Personal Databases has not been established yet, therefore for the moment legislative requirements regarding state registration of personal databases cannot be practically complied with. For the Bill to become law, it should be finally adopted by the Parliament (in the second or third reading), signed by the President and officially published.

INFORMATION: RULG, Ukrainian Legal Group, Olimpiysky Center, 72, Velyka Vasylkivska Street Suite 14, Kiev 03150, Ukraine, Phone: [380] (44) 207-1060; Fax: [380](44) 207-1064 and 4056 Mansion Dr., N.W. , Washington, D.C. 20007, USA Phone: [1] (202) 338-1182, Fax: [1] (202) 338-4237

Disclaimer: The content of this Legal Alert is not legal advice, but a general informational summary of the law. Resource to qualified legal counsel is always required for legal advice. Failure to make timely inquiries of legal counsel may cause important legal deadlines to be missed.
NOTE: The Ukrainian Legal Group is a member of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Washington, D.C., www.usubc.org.
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4. UKRAINIAN BUSINESS & INVESTMENT LUNCHEON & ROUNDTABLE," AND OPENING OF THE "ANCIENT UKRAINE: GOLDEN TREASURES & LOST CIVILIZATIONS AND SACRED IMAGES EXHIBITION"
Final call for registrations for the major events in Houston
Invitation: Friday, June 3, luncheon, 12:00 to 2:30 p.m.; VIP Exhibition opening Houston Museum of National Science, 5:00 p.m., Houston, Texas
U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Wash, D.C., Wed, June 1, 2011

WASHINGTON -- YOU ARE INVITED TO ATTEND the "Ukrainian Business & Investment Luncheon & Roundtable" in downtown Houston, Texas and the opening of the Glory to Ukraine: Ancient Ukraine: Golden Treasures & Lost Civilizations and Sacred Images from the 11th to the 19th Centuries Exhibition" at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Houston, Texas, on Friday, June 3, 2011.

The "Ukrainian Business & Investment Luncheon and Roundtable," will be held from 12:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Petroleum Club of Houston, 500 Bell Street, #4300. The gala opening of the "Ancient Ukraine: Golden Treasures & Lost Civilizations and Sacred Images from the 11th to the 19th Centuries" exhibition will be held at the Houston Museum of National Science, www.hmns.org, 5555 Hermann Park Drive, Houston, TX 77030, (see information about the Glory to Ukraine Exhibition below). Those who attend the business luncheon are invited to a special VIP opening of the Exhibition at the Museum from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The exhibition opens to the public at 6 p.m. and closes at 8:45 p.m.

LUNCHEON: AMBASSADOR OLEXANDER MOTSYK AND PANEL OF EXPERTS
The "Ukrainian Business & Investment Luncheon & Roundtable" will feature the Honorable Olexander Motsyk, Ambassador of Ukraine to the USA, and a panel of top business leaders whose companies are doing business and investing in Ukraine. There will be a Q&A session following the panel discussion. Presenters and panelists will include:

• The Honorable Olexander Motsyk, Ambassador of Ukraine to the USA
• Sergey A. Taruta, leading Ukrainian businessman, philanthropist & chairman, Industrial Union of Donbass (ISD), www.isd.com.ua/en/, one of the largest private companies,
• Michael Bleyzer, Founder and President, SigmaBleyzer, www.SigmaBleyzer.com, Houston, TX, one of the largest private equity investors in Ukraine.
• Kerry Tassopoulos, Vice President, Government Relations and Compliance, Mary Kay Inc.
• Gene Van Dyke, Chairman, CEO & President, Vanco Exploration Company
• Ambassador Oleh Shamshur, Senior Advisor, PBN Company, Member of the Board of Directors, Phoenix Capital.
• Andrew A. Pidgirsky, Partner, Adams and Reese LLP.
• Bohdan Bejmuk, Chairman of the Review Board, NASA Constellation Program
• Craig Phillips, Chief Executive Officer, Volia Software

Welcoming remarks will be brought by Greg Buchai, Honorary Consul General of Ukraine, Houston, TX. Morgan Williams, Director, Government Affairs, Washington Office, for the SigmaBleyzer private equity investment management group, who serves as President of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC) will moderate the business luncheon and the panel of business experts roundtable.

HOUSTON LUNCHEON COORDINATING COMMITTEE - ANDREW PIDGIRSKY
The chair of the Coordinating Committee in Houston for the "Ukrainian Business & Investment Luncheon & Roundtable" is Andrew A. Pidgirsky, Partner, Adams and Reese LLP, Houston. Andrew represents the Ukrainian American Bar Association (UABA), http://www.uaba.org/, on the Board of Directors of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC) and is a member of the USUBC Executive Committee. Andrew Pidgirsky can be contacted at 713 308 0138, mobile: 713 492 6183, e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

The Ukrainian business luncheon and roundtable in Houston, Texas is sponsored by the over 160 members of U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), www.usubc.org. The Glory to Ukraine: Golden Treasures and Sacred Images Exhibition is sponsored by The Foundation for International Arts and Education (FIAE), www.fiae.org, Gregory Guroff, President, a member of USUBC, and the Houston Museum of Natural Science, www.hmns.org.

PASS THE WORD TO YOUR FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES IN TEXAS
You will not want to miss the exciting events taking place in Houston, Texas on Friday, June 3, 2011. Please send this invitation to your friends and to the representatives of your companies and organizations who work in the Midwest/Southwest part of the USA and invite them to attend these special events in Houston, TX.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS -- Friday, June 3, Houston, Texas
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6,000 YEARS OF ARCHAEOLOGY! ANCIENT UKRAINE OPENS IN HOUSTON
Ancient Ukraine - Golden Treasures and Lost Civilizations and Sacred Images, 11th to 19th Centuries

Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston Texas, Monday, May 16, 2011

HOUSTON - On tour for the first time in the United States, the exhibit Glory to Ukraine: Golden Treasures and Lost Civilizations and Sacred Images from the 11th to the 19th Centuries covers 6,000 years of history and prehistory of various cultures that once inhabited the territory of modern Ukraine. A gala opening for the exhibition will take place at the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, 5555 Hermann Park Drive, Houston, Texas on Friday evening, June 3, 2011 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:45 p.m.

Ancient trade routes crossed this part of the world for countless centuries. As a result, trade items from many of the Old World’s civilizations have been found in Ukraine.

The Beginning: Trypilian culture
The exhibit starts with the Trypilian culture, dating back to 5,000 BC. Pottery decorated with red and black paints, sacred symbols, as well as temple models and animal sculptures, will be on display.

Scythian Style
Between the 7th and 3rd centuries BC, the Scythians, known for their beautiful stylized animal-shaped ornaments, roamed what is now Ukraine. The fertile soil of the region attracted Greek settlers as early as the 7th century BC.

Hellenistic Influences
Greek presence lasted well into the Hellenistic period (around the 2nd century BC), represented here by a dazzling array of bronze sculpture, exquisite gold jewelry, extraordinary rhytons (drinking cups partially in the shape of a ram), black-slip pottery, and amphorae.

Roman Might
Rome’s might reached the Black Sea—and the shores of Ukraine—as early as the 1st century BC. We see Roman presence reflected in art forms that blend traditions from both Greek and Roman worlds. Among the items on display are bright red and orange pottery, transparent glass, bronze and silver vessels, and jewelry incorporating precious stones, filigree, granulation and inlays.

Byzantine Treasures
Discover treasures from the Byzantine Empire, the ancient Slavic state of Kyivan Rus’, and various steppe nomads, spanning the 5th through the 13th centuries AD. Utensils, relics, chalices, kolts, pendants, rings, bracelets and necklaces provide an idea of the array of objects used by the inhabitants of medieval Ukraine.

This exhibit is presented by the Foundation for International Arts & Education of Bethesda, Maryland in cooperation with the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (www.usubc.org) and with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States and the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.

PART I: SACRED IMAGES FROM THE 11th TO THE 19th CENTURIES

The Icons from the Monastery of the Caves. Most commonly a flat panel painting, an icon is a religious image used for devotion and often believed to possess miracle-working abilities. Deriving from Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Catholicism, icons depict holy beings or objects such as Jesus, Mary, saints, angels, or the cross.

The exhibition presents more than 80 objects, which, in addition to some of the finest icons from the Monastery of the Caves' extensive holdings, include some truly exceptional liturgical objects: chalices, ceremonial and altar crosses, silver gospel covers, and textiles displaying masterful needlework and embroidery.

During much of its early history, Ukraine's borders were open to the East and the West. Byzantine Orthodox and Catholic traditions mixed with the Renaissance and Baroque styles. Over the centuries, Ukrainian iconography was influenced by Russian, Greek, and Roman cultures. Many icons had folklore and legends as their basis and were enhanced with floral designs and the use of brilliant, rich blues, reds, and golds, making Ukrainian icons truly unique.

Exhibition highlights include:

• Mother of God Hodigitria, 1370 — One of the oldest existing Ukrainian icons.
• Congregation of All Saints of Pechersk Lavra, late 18th/early 19th centuries — Portraying 118 saints of the Monastery of the Caves, where their remains are still kept, upon their official canonization
• Cross of the Holy Monk Mark of the Caves, 11th century - A rare pectoral reliquary cross (a hinged cross, suspended from the neck by a cord or  chain, that opens to reveal a religious relic) that belonged to one of the early monks of the Monastery, Mark, who was responsible for burials in the caves.
• Royal Doors, 16th century — Royal Doors, also known as Holy Doors, are the central gates of the iconostasis in an Orthodox church leading to the altar. On this pair, among the earliest known sets, only the Evangelists are seen, which is unique in Ukrainian iconography.

ABOUT THE MONASTERY OF THE CAVES
The Monastery of the Caves, the oldest Orthodox Monastery in all of Eastern Europe, fuses nature with man-made structures created over nine centuries. The 57-acre site includes buildings, churches, and residential structures, as well as two unique cave complexes with underground labyrinths over 656 yards
long.

Created in 1051, the monastery, in Ukrainian, is called Kyiv-Pechersk — Kyiv for the location (Kiev) and Pechersk for the Ukrainian word for caves: pechery. The Monastery of the Caves is often referred to with the term "Lavra." Lavra is the highest honor given to monasteries, and the Monastery of the Caves received that designation in 1159.

PART II: GOLDEN TREASURES AND LOST CIVILIZATIONS 

The artifacts in this section of the exhibition are from the PlaTar Collection (the private collection of Nikolai Platonov and Sergei Taruta) of thousands of objects from ancient civilizations that populated modern-day Ukraine. Among them are weapons, flint and copper tools, ritual objects, earthenware, and gold and silver jewelry. Of particular significance are a number of objects that date to the Trypillian culture.

Considered the greatest city of "Old Europe", Trypillia was the center of Neolithic pre-civilization, boasting some 15,000 inhabitants as early as 5,000 BC, and pre-dated the rise of the Romans, Chinese, Greeks, and Egyptians.

The Trypillians' large, urbanized communities flourished with technological, ideological, religious, and political structures. They developed techniques of metalworking and pottery making, as well as applied and decorative arts that precede all known markers of the development of civilization.

Other cultures represented in the exhibition include the ancient horse-riding, nomadic groups—the Cimmerians of Indo-European and the Scythians of Iranian origin (known for their gold objects), Sarmatians (an Iranian people flourishing from the 5th century be to the 4th century ad), Greeks, Celts, Goths, Huns, and the Khazar (a semi-nomadic Turkic people).

The splendid array of objects includes stone, flint, and copper tools and weapons; pottery and other ceramic materials; bronze sculpture; extraordinary transparent glass, bronze, gold and silver vessels; an exquisite silver headdress and gold jewelry, including pendants, rings, bracelets, and necklaces with precious stones; and objects of Christian worship: relics, a gold chalice, and crosses.

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