Archaeological And Cultural News From Armenia

Surface faults in Van

Dr. Mustafa Toker announced that seismological instruments in Van revealed faults in the earth’s crust that are invisible since they hadn’t left any gaps on the surface of the earth. Toker noted that an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 in 2011 in Van was caused by these faults.

According to the expert, “Historical Armenia is home to some of the most famous faults in the world. The most famous of them is Chıldran Fault. Since the Van earthquake in 2011, there have been no earthquakes in Chıldran. But if this fault progresses, it will cause another strong earthquake.”

Roman-era sculpture found in Samosat

In the province of Samosat (Adıyaman) in Historical Armenia, locals discovered an 8-ton Roman relief sculpture on a tombstone depicting a husband bidding farewell to his deceased wife. Village residents who discovered the tombstone reported their find to the management of the Samosat museum.

Within the 6-month period after the sculpture had been moved to the garden of the museum of Samosat, more than 50 thousand people visited the museum to see it.

Burial grounds found in Artanish

7th-6th-century BC anthropological materials discovered during excavations in Artanish last year have been partially restored. Among the discovered artifacts and items are children’s skeletons.

Last year, an archaeological expedition unearthed two tombs. One of them was made for a single individual, while the other was intended for a group of people. According to anthropologist Hasmik Simonyan, the group tomb is especially interesting since about 30 human skeletons were found in it.

Archaeological excavations are to continue this year in Artanish.

The oldest manuscript restored in Matenadaran

A rare Armenian manuscript was restored in Yerevan’s Matenadaran. It dates to 981 and was written by priest David and his son Ghukas. Visitors to the Matenadaran museum complex will be able to see this unique relic from now on.

Experts have already called this artifact “unique and priceless”. Called “Book of Knowledge and Faith of Priest David”, this is one of the oldest manuscripts in the world. This is also the first manuscript executed in lowercase, a style that would become standard in typography.

The manuscript contains excerpts from the works of Gregory the Illuminator, Movses Khorenatsi, Anania Shirakatsi, and other medieval Armenian authors.