BALTIMORE, MD.- The Walters Art Museum announced a signed memorandum of cooperation with the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum in Hildesheim, Germany. An official delegation from Hildesheim, one of the oldest and most popular cities in Northern Germany, visited Baltimore to participate in a series of meetings at the Walters July 29 through Aug. 1. The talks culminated in the Mayor and Director of the City of Hildesheim Kurt Machens and Walters Director Gary Vikan signing an agreement that includes: exhibition exchanges; professional development opportunities for museum employees, including staff exchanges; the long-term loans of art; and discussions of museum best practices.

“The Walters is pleased to participate in this cultural exchange with the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum,” said Vikan. “I believe that there is much to be learned from our museum colleagues around the world. This agreement will benefit our two museums and give visitors the chance to see wonderful art that they would not otherwise have the chance to experience.”

“I was deeply impressed with the Walters Art Museum when I visited several years ago,” said Machens. “The Walters has an excellent international reputation as a trend-setting U.S. museum, and the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum will greatly benefit from this cooperative arrangement.”

One example of a future shared exhibition includes Secrets of the Universe: The Egyptian Book of the Faiyum, which will be on view at both the Walters and at the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum. This major exhibition of ancient Egyptian art and artifacts will illustrate how the universe was created, how it functions and what the Egyptians did to sustain it.

Regine Schulz, current Walters curator of ancient art and director of international curatorial relations, will be the new director of the Roemer and Pelizaeus Museum starting in Sept 2011. Schulz was elected to the Executive Council of the International Council of Museums at the triennial meeting in Shanghai last November and was formerly the chairperson of the International Committee of Egyptology.