Categories: Culture

The Early Christian Culture Of Artsakh

Archaeological studies of recent years in Artsakh have found interesting elements of early Christian culture in its territory. The head of the Artsakh archaeological expedition Hamlet Petrosyan announced this in an interview with reporters of “Armenpress”.

According to Petrosyan, during the archaeological excavations of the temple of Surb-Stepanos of Vachar, an interesting mausoleum was discovered near its eastern aisle.

“In Vachar, we discovered a mausoleum, a church, a chapel, 50 new khachkars (cross-stones), and up to 2 dozen new inscriptions,” said Hamlet Petrosyan.

“It’s important that Vachar is located only 1.5 km from the road to Gandzasar and that a sponsor has assisted us with the excavations,” added Petrosyan.

According to Petrosyan, during excavations in Dadivank last year, an underground passage 6.5 meters long was discovered under a small domed church.

“Unfortunately, nothing could be found there. Before, no excavations have been carried out under our church buildings. But today, it turns out that many of them are based on old graves or shelters,” said Hamlet Petrosyan.

Vigen Avetisyan

Recent Posts

Hayravank Monastery: The “Father Monastery” of Lake Sevan and the Legend of the Doves

On a rocky promontory above the southwestern shore of Lake Sevan, at an elevation of…

20 hours ago

Scythian Ceremonial Swords and the Art of the Van Kingdom (Urartu)

Among the most arresting objects to survive from the Early Iron Age Near East are…

3 days ago

Abandoned by an Ally: The French Armenian Legion in Cilicia and the Road to the Smyrna Catastrophe

How a promise made to genocide survivors was traded away for peace with Ankara —…

7 days ago

The Vilgort Cup: A Silver Masterpiece of Cilician Armenia (c. 1150–1159 A.D.)

A Fragment That Traveled Across Continents The gilt-silver medallion shown above — two richly dressed…

1 week ago

Hannibal and Artaxias the Great: The Carthaginian General Who Helped Build the “Armenian Carthage”

Few episodes in ancient Armenian history capture the imagination quite like the tradition that Hannibal…

2 weeks ago

The Priestess of the Kingdom of Van: A 9th-Century BC Bronze Figurine in the British Museum

Five angles of one small bronze figure — and what emerges is not an abstract…

3 weeks ago