To Prevent Cultural Genocide

[chinchilla]

Poor Gyumri. That earthquake turned it into a "typically Armenian" city: barren and ruined. And of course half of its former inhabitants are now in the diaspora, especially here in California.

It's too bad about the borders being closed or else Armenians could study Ani as well as its surroundings freely. However, I once read an interview by Hetq where they interviewed an American specialist in architecture, and she said that if the border were opened, the "Gyumri mafiosi" are ready to do to Gyumri what has been done to Yerevan (she didn't exactly say it that way, but she probably meant it).

Here it is: http://www.hetq.am/eng/culture/0704-armenia.html

And perhaps those Armenian lobbies in Washington should lobby to have Armenia remove the quarry...

[bell-the-cat]

Thanks as always for the clarification and insight that article was unable to convey (wow amazing pic!)

Thank "Google Earth".

The river of course is the border between Turkey and Armenia.

I think the satellite photo was taken in 2003.

If you look at photo 10 at http://www.virtualani.org/quarry/ that shows some of the gravestones that are located just below the rubble of the quarry shown in photo 7. They are Christian graves - they are orientated east-west - and there are probably a lot more hidden under the earth.

[Gavur]

Thanks as always for the clarification and insight that article was unable to convey (wow amazing pic!)

[bell-the-cat]

Here is a picture of the location. I think the site lies at the cliffs between the two quarries. Horomos monastery is at the top right.

[bell-the-cat]

Haikadzor
is the only suburb of Ani located
within the territory of the Republic
of Armenia, making it the only
part of Ani open to archaeological
investigation by Armenians.

Completely wrong. But it is easy to see why it is made out to be true. There are the remains of suburbs of Ani directly opposite Ani, but they are being destroyed by the quarry that is also directly opposite Ani (and which, rumour has it, is under the control of the same mafiosi that run Gyumri). A lot, including cave churches, has already been destroyed - and a medieval cemetery is now threatened. I don't think Dr. Khachatrian would last long in Gyumri if he were to make too much publicity about that.

Thanks to the efforts
of Dr. Khachatrian, the mining
activities were terminated and
the site was saved from destruction.

Quarrying is actually still going on all around the site (as well as at the massive quarry opposite Ani of course). The settlement probably existed because it was located at a spot on the river that could be easily forded.

[Gavur]

Site in Armenia provides information about ancient capital across the border

Project Discovery funds archaeological research at
an Ani suburb, on the Armenian side of the border

http://www.armenianreporteronline.com/generating/pdf/jul28-2007/BE0728.pdf

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. –7
Project Discovery has awarded a
grant of $7,175 to Dr. Hamazasp
Khachatrian, director of the Shirak
Regional Museum in Gyumri, to
conduct archaeological research at
Haikadzor.
Haikadzor was occupied during
the Middle Ages, when it was a
suburb of Ani, the famed medieval
capital of Armenia. The remains of
Ani are on the Turkish side of the
Armenian-Turkish border. Haikadzor
is located in front of the monastery
of Horomos, situated about 15
km (9 mi) northeast of Ani, beside
the Akhurian River on the Armenian-
Turkish border.
Horomos, founded during the
reign of the Bagratid King Abas I
(928-953), brother of King Ashot
Yergat, was one of the most important
religious and cultural centers
within the kingdom of Ani. Haikadzor
is the only suburb of Ani located
within the territory of the Republic
of Armenia, making it the only
part of Ani open to archaeological
investigation by Armenians. Thus,
this grant affords a unique and important
opportunity to study the
material culture of Ani.
Ani, built on a spectacular site
– a plateau enclosed by deep ravines
– was once the capital of a medieval
Armenian kingdom that covered
much of present-day Armenia and
eastern Turkey. Renowned for its
splendor and magnificence, Ani rivaled
the great cities of Constantinople,
Baghdad, and Cairo. At the
height of its glory, Ani’s population
reached between 100,000 and
200,000.
Ani is first mentioned in Armenian
chronicles in the 5th century
as a possession of the Armenian
Kamsarakan dynasty. By the
early 9th century, Ani had gone
to Bagratunis. By the end of the
10th century, the Armenian catholicate
had moved its seat to Ani.
The city reached its apogee at the
start of the 11th century, when it
was known as the “City of Forty
Gates” and the “City of a Thousand
and One Churches.” Located at the
crossroads of various trade routes,
Ani developed strong commercial
ties with the cities of Byzantium,
Persia, Southern Russia and Central
Asia.
The city comprised dozens of religious
structures (churches, chapels,
monasteries, and mausoleums)
and secular buildings (royal
palaces, mansions, baths, markets,
caravanserais) and defensive
structures (the citadel and double
line of ramparts) as well as bridges,
aqueducts, and sewer systems.
While the urban center of Ani was
being developed, so too was an underground
Ani being built, whose
remains testify to the existence
of hundreds of houses, dozens of
chapels and tombs, monastery
complexes, and city service facilities
such as stables, mills, cellars,
reservoirs, stores and food shops,
all essential in the event of a siege
of the city.
The city’s economic, social, and
cultural boom was accompanied by
the expansion of its building and architecture.
Its numerous religious
structures, palaces, and fortifications
were among the most technically
and artistically advanced in
the world at that time. Ani’s architects
were of such renown that the
influence of the Ani school of architecture
extended over the whole of
Armenia.
But Ani’s glory would soon fade.
The city fell victim to waves of conquerors
over several centuries, and
later was devastated by an earthquake.
Ani was finally abandoned
and largely forgotten – until the
late 1890s, when Toros Toromanyan
and Nikolai Marr undertook
to excavate at Ani. Their research
was interrupted by the First World
War.
Lost magnificence
The site Dr. Khachatrian will study
was discovered in 1998. It was used
as a stone quarry, which destroyed
part of the site. Thanks to the efforts
of Dr. Khachatrian, the mining
activities were terminated and
the site was saved from destruction.
In 2003–06 the Terzian family of
Paris funded archaeological excavations
at Haikadzor. During this
time, excavations were carried out
both within and outside of the
caves there. As a result of these
investigations, the archaeological
team was able to glean insight
into the lifestyle of the people
who populated Ani. One of the
caves had been occupied by six
to eight horned cattle, indicating
that the people were engaged in
cattle breeding. The archaeologists
uncovered a bakery with 20 ovens
for baking bread, indicating that
the local residents not only made
bread for their own consumption
but also for sale to the larger population
of Ani. Copper and silver
coins discovered in the caves and
nearby territory indicate robust
commercial activities.
Further research at the site
is of critical importance to the
study of Ani. The last excavation
of Ani, carried out by Toros Toromanyan
and Nikolai Marr, ended
in 1917. All the finds from that
excavation were transported to
Russia in 1918 to preserve them
from Turkish intervention. Unfortunately,
much of the material
never reached Russia and was lost
forever.
The National History Museum
of Armenia has only one collection
of Ani finds that includes artifacts
from the Bronze to the Middle
Ages. However, that that collection,
for the most part, comprises only
fragments of ceramics and metal,
and none of them was properly
documented at the time of their
discovery so they have little value
as scientific evidence.
Dr. Khachatrian is optimistic
that his team’s further excavations
at Haikadzor will reveal a wealth
of important information about
the material culture and lifestyle of
the people of Ani, thereby preserving
in the annals of world history
this magnificent time and place in
Armenia’s past.

www.projectdiscovery.net.

[bell-the-cat]

Arminfo
"The restoration of the Sourb Khach Church has been carried out at a
high level and complies with international standards, on the whole,"
G.Gyurjyan said.

Entirely wrong. The restoration breaks or ignores just about every current standard of best-practice.
The fact that the restoration was up to Armenian standards is nothing to be proud of. His very use of the word "restoration" (as if it were a good thing) graphically shows how backward the concepts of preserving historical monuments and artefacts currently are in both Turkey and Armenia. That is not to say I am particularly critical of Mr Gyurgyan, he is a decent person, but he should have better advisors on the subject. For him to wish a similar fate be inflicted on Ani is most disturbing.

He expressed regret at the fact that the issue of placing a
cross on the dome of the church was discussed more than the
restoration itself.

I have yet to read a single useful comment anywhere on the restoration itself.

[Joseph]

Bingo!

Read the final paragraph
Armenians Remember Genocide At Hands Of Turks
VIDEO: Watch The Latest News
SLIDESHOWS: View The Day's Top Photos
(CBS) LOS ANGELES Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the Los Angeles City Council and Armenian leaders gathered Friday to commemorate the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide committed by the Turks, which resulted in the deaths of 1.5 million people in 1915.

"Today's remembrance ... will not only keep us all united in our remembrance of the 1.5 million lost souls, it will also help us teach the new generation to prevent injustice and intolerance and will renew our respect for all of humanity," said Archbishop Honvan Derderian, primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church.

Turkey rejects the genocide label and argues that about 300,000 Armenians, and at least as many Turks, died during civil strife in 1915.

The deaths occurred when Armenians in eastern Anatolia fought for independence and sided with Russian troops invading the crumbing Ottoman Empire during World War I.

"It is important that the next generation of truth tellers is here with us today," Villaraigosa said. "Denial of the genocide is an attempt to instill fear in the hearts of all those who treasure truth. The first condition of justice is recognition of the gravity of the evil done."

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, introduced a resolution in January that asked President Bush to recognize the killings.

In February, the City Council designated the Armenian capital of Yerevan as a sister city to Los Angeles, under a plan spearheaded by Councilman Eric Garcetti.

"Today it may feel long ago, but to think of the 3,000 years of culture and history ... that (the Armenian genocide) tried to wipe from the earth makes us realize that it is part of our present," Garcetti said.

(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report. )

[Gavur]

According To Deputy Minister Of Culture, Cross To Be Mounted Soon

ACCORDING TO DEPUTY MINISTER OF CULTURE, CROSS TO BE MOUNTED SOON ON DOME OF SURB KHACH CHURCH

Noyan Tapan
Apr 02 2007

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, NOYAN TAPAN. If the Armenian Patriarch of
Constantinople Mesrob Mutafian had not delivered a speech at the
re-opening ceremony of Surb Khach (Holy Cross) Church on Aghtamar
Island of Van, the head of the Armenian delegation which attended
the ceremony, RA deputy minister of culture and youth issues Gagik
Gyurjian would have made a speech. G. Gyurjian stated this at the
April 2 press conference. In his words, according to a preliminary
agreement and the Turkish side's plan, the Armenian delegation
was not to make a speech, however, a speech was prepared jointly
the RA Ministry of Foreign Affairs io order to use it in case of
necessity. The deputy minister said that in his speech the Armenian
Patriarch of Constantinople pointed out a number of issues of concern
to the Armenians, including the issue of mounting a cross on the
church's dome, celebrating the holiday of Surb Khach (Holy Cross)
once a year, and declaring March 29 Day of Aghtamar (on this day,
a national festivity with songs and dances will be held). As regards
the fact that there were Turkish flags and a portrait of Ataturk on
the church during the ceremony, G. Gyurjian noted that according
to Turkish law, "the Turkish flag and a portrait of Ataturk shall
be displayed at all state and governmental events." In his words,
the flag and portrait were immediately removed after the ceremony.

He expressed an opinion that the cross of the church will be mounted
soon - the cross has already been made and is now at the Patriarchate
of Constantinople. Moreover, the deputy minister said that the group
implementing the repair work during the church's restoration kept a
constant touch with them. The Turkish side consulted with Armenian
architects on the issue of making the cross. G. Gyurjian said that
the church was restored and repaired in line with international
architectural standards, although there are some insignificant defects.

[Gavur]

Armenian Delegation Discusses Restoration Of Ancient City Of Ani In Turkey

Arminfo
2007-04-02 18:26:00

"We should establish contacts with the Turkish side and learn to trust
each other," Armenian Deputy Minister of Culture and Youth Gagik
Gyurjyan said at a press-conference in Yerevan, Monday. To remind,
G.Gyurjyan led the Armenian delegation which participated in the
opening ceremony of the Sourb Khach (St.Cross) Church in Lake Van,
West Armenia (modern Turkey).

He noted that the trip was fruitful. During private conversations
with representatives of the Turkish authorities, the Armenian side
raised the issue of restoring the ancient Armenian city of Ani. The
head of the delegation expressed hope that the next meeting of the
sides will be held for this purpose.

"The restoration of the Sourb Khach Church has been carried out at a
high level and complies with international standards, on the whole,"
G.Gyurjyan said.

He expressed regret at the fact that the issue of placing a
cross on the dome of the church was discussed more than the
restoration itself. "As for the Turkish flag hung out during the
opening ceremony, it should be noted that it is stipulated by the
legislation of this country while holding all the official events,"
he emphasized. Answering the journalists' question whether the
restoration of the Sourb Khach Church is a PR action made by the
Turkish Government, G.Gyurjyan pointed out that he welcomes any action
aimed at restoring an architectural monument, moreover, an Armenian
monument. "One shouldn't demand too much of Turkey at the current
stage," he said in conclusion.