Artifacts of Tigranakert archeological museum moved to a secure place, head of excavations says

Artifacts of the the archaeological camp of the ancient Armenian city of Tigranakert in Artsakh have been moved to a secure place, the Head of the YSU Chair of Culturology, Doctor of History, Professor Hamlet Petrosyan informed.

 

"This was made possible thanks to two brave supporters. During this difficult period of war, museum property can hardly be considered a serious material value. Yet even damaged, it symbolizes Tigranakert, our culture," Petrosyan informed.

 

To remind, the archaeological camp of Tigranakert in Artsakh has repeatedly been targeted by the Azerbaijani troops, as the cultural monument is in the zone of active military operations. Petrosyan, who leads the excavations in the ancient town, had earlier told Panorama.am that the area of Tigranakert comprising about 4 km is constantly being shelled, adding at the moment the damages inflicted on various sites cannot be assessed.

 

"The whole area of Tigranakert, which is on a mountain, comes under shelling. The town is clearly visible from afar. Our camp, which is also located in the area of the monument, about 200 meters away from the museum and the walls built by [King] Tigran, was shelled and destroyed. Now we do not know what the situation is in the other locations. We only assume that there are definitely damages, because the mountain is constantly shelled. Now it is impossible to study and evaluate the main sites of the monument," the archeologist had said.

 

To remind, excavations of the ancient site of Tigranakert have been underway for a few years now, with massive stone building foundations and ruins being unearthed, as well as many relics.

 

Archaeologists have uncovered two of the main walls of the city, as well as Hellenistic-style towers and an Armenian basilica dating to fifth to seventh centuries. In June 2010, a museum dedicated to the study and preservation of artifacts unearthed from Tigranakert's ruins was opened in the adjacent Shahbulag Castle.