|
Simon Maghakyan,
who is an independent
researcher of cultural destruction and lecturer in International Relations at
the University of Colorado Denver. |
|
Armenian
News Network / Groong
Hello
and welcome to the Armenian News Network, Groong,
I’m Asbed Bedrossian.
In
this Conversations on Groong
episode, we’ll be talking about the continuing degradation of Armenian heritage
sites in historic Armenian lands, and the problems of preserving our monuments
and cultural sites against the erosion of time, and the threat of destruction
by anti-Armenian neighbors.
To
discuss these issues with our guests, our host today is:
|
Simon Maghakyan,
who is an independent
researcher of cultural destruction and lecturer in International Relations at
the University of Colorado Denver. |
|
This
episode was recorded on Wednesday, June 16, 2021.
“All these stones are fake. This is Armenian
forgery,” proclaimed Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev on March 15, 2021,
while visiting a medieval Armenian church that recently came under Azerbaijan’s
control, following the latter’s Turkey-backed battlefield success. In the fall
of 2020, Azerbaijan and Armenia fought over the internationally unrecognized
Armenian republic of Artsakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh. Antique and
medieval Armenian cultural sites, which President Aliyev considers “fake” (because
he asserts, Armenians didn’t exist in the region until the 19 th century), have now come under Azerbaijan’s control on
lands ethnically cleansed of Armenians. To say that these sacred heritage sites
are at risk would be a monumental understatement, especially in light of the
same Azerbaijani government’s erasure, in 1997-2006, of nearly 28,000 medieval
Armenian monuments in another region, Nakhichevan. But what exactly is at risk
of erasure? And how much do we know about Artsakh’s cultural heritage and its
ongoing destruction?
To talk about
these issues, we are joined by:
|
Christina Maranci, who
is Arthur H. Dadian and Ara T. Oztemel
Professor of Armenian art and architectural history and Chair of the
Department of the History of Art and Architecture at Tufts University. |
|
And...
|
Lori Khatchadourian,
who is Associate Professor
of Near Eastern Studies at Cornell University and co-director of the Caucasus
Heritage Watch satellite monitoring project. |
|
● Lori, what has come under Azerbaijan’s control?
● Christina, what is Armenian art and
architecture? What are its period highlights? And where does Artsakh’s heritage
fit in the larger picture of Armenian culture?
● Lori, tell us what the Caucasus Heritage Watch
is doing and what you have uncovered so far?
● Lori to Simon: Tell us about your recent
findings regarding Agulis
● Christina, tell us how your advocacy and
research of Mren has transformed its preservation
● Lori, what can international organizations do for
Artsakh?
● Christina, tell us what our listeners can do for
cultural preservation
● 17th century Armenian church on
preservation list demolished in western Turkey - Stockholm Center for Freedom
● UNESCO to send fact-finding
mission to Karabakh
- Aysor
● Armenian FM, UNESCO head discuss
preservation of Armenian heritage in Nagorno Karabakh - Armenpress
● All previous attempts to involve
UNESCO in preservation of cultural heritage in Karabakh have failed – Armenia
MoD - Public Radio
of Armenia
● EU shares Armenian concerns over
preservation of Artsakh’s cultural heritage – Ambassador Wiktorin - Armenpress
● Baku Undermines Armenian Cultural
Preservation, Says Yerevan - Asbarez
● KHACHKARS: Documentation,
Preservation, and Continuation - NAASR event
● When an Enemy’s Cultural Heritage
Becomes One’s Own
- NY Times
● UNESCO ready to support
preservation of cultural goods in Nagorno Karabakh - Armenpress
● New Discoveries at Ani Cathedral - NAASR
● Art History Under Lockdown: Tufts
Art Historian Maranci Discovers Ani Cathedral Wall
Paintings and More
- MirrorSpectator
● Ancient Roots of Armenia - Dr
Christina Maranci - Michabo
● Christina Maranci references
● Christina Maranci: Save Mren
Cathedral from collapsing – call for action
●
Heghnar Zeitlian
Watenpaugh Wins NEH Grant for Book on Ani - Asbarez
More recently:
●
Cultural Heritage in the
Crosshairs Once More
- WSJ
● Important archeological materials
discovered during renovation of Armenian kindergarten in Jerusalem - Armenpress
● https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-06-16/pdf/2021-12646.pdf - Federal Register
● https://armenianprelacy.org/2021/05/13/save-armenian-monuments-launches-in-new-york/ - Armenian Prelacy
● https://www.theartnewspaper.com/feature/agulis - The Art Newspaper
●
https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/accord-between-us-and-turkey-to-counter-illicit-trade-in-artefacts-divides-historians-and-preservationists - The Art Newspaper
That
concludes this Conversations On Groong episode.
As always we invite your feedback, Thanks to Laura
Osborn for the music on our podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe to our channel
on YouTube, Like
our pages and follow us on Twitter. On behalf of everyone in this episode, we
wish you a good week, thanks for listening and we’ll talk to you soon.
Simon Maghakyan, Christina Maranci, Lori Khachadourian,
Armenia, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Nakhichevan, Cultural Monuments, Heritage
Sites, Preservation, Destruction, UNESCO, Azerbaijan, Khachkars, Turkey, Ani, Mren, Dadivank, Vankasar, Kashatagh, Shushi, Agulis, Ilham Aliyev,
