Events
The defense of Ruzan Mkrtchyan’s doctoral dissertation took place at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography
On June 26, a doctoral dissertation defense was held in the reading room of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia (IAE). The dissertation, titled “Bioarchaeology of the Sevan Basin (Middle and Late Bronze Ages),” was presented by Ruzanna Mkrtchyan during a session of Professional Council 007 (Archaeology and Ethnography). The dissertation is devoted to the reconstruction of the anthropological type, demographic profile, lifestyle, diet, and burial practices of the Middle and Late Bronze Age population of the Sevan Basin. The research is based on craniometric and osteometric data, sex and age determinations, and dental pathology analysis. The official opponents were Doctors of History, Professors Hayk G. Avetisyan, Garegin S. Tumanyan, and Hakob Ye. Simonyan. The leading institution for the dissertation is the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia. Several speeches were delivered during the defense, and all speakers highly praised Ruzanna Mkrtchyan’s scholarly work.
2025-06-27
A three-day conference entitled “Political Violence, Exile, and Memory in the USSR” took place
The conference titled “Political Violence, Exile, and Memory in the USSR,” organized by the Applied Anthropology Research Group of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography in collaboration with the Department of Modern Anthropology, has concluded. The event was held over two days in the city of Goris, Syunik Province, and one day in Yerevan, at the Memorial Complex dedicated to the Victims of Political Violence. The presentations in the first and second sessions of the conference explored specific episodes of political violence in Soviet Armenia — from the suppression of peasant resistance during the establishment of “kolkhozes” (collective farms) to the 1949 deportation of Armenians from Soviet republics in the Black Sea region. During the discussion of the deportation of the Hamshen Armenians, participants honored the memory of their late colleague Sergey Vardanyan with a minute of silence. Vardanyan had extensively studied the life of the Hamshen Armenians, who were exiled in 1944 and have still not been granted the right to return. The sessions also addressed less overt forms of political violence, including the restriction of individual and group identity choices during official Soviet censuses. Several presentations focused on the official, administrative, colloquial, and journalistic language used to “cover” acts of violence—language that, in reality, facilitated and legitimized the implementation of that violence. The concluding presentation examined the ethno-social composition of those repressed in Soviet Armenia between 1920 and 1953, based on materials from the National Archives of the Republic of Armenia. The third session took place at the Axel Bakunts House-Museum, honoring the writer who was executed in 1937 under the so-called “Stalin Lists.” This session featured individual stories of victims of political violence—shared as biographical sketches, memoirs, and most importantly, as integral parts of the broader narrative of political repression. On June 13, the conference participants took part in the celebration of the 126th anniversary of Axel Bakunts' birth in the city of Goris. On June 14—marked in Armenia as the “Day of Remembrance of the Repressed,” in accordance with the RA Law “On Holidays and Days of Remembrance”—they visited the Memorial Complex for the Victims of Political Violence in the USSR in Yerevan. There, they presented data on the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of those convicted in Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan according to Stalin’s lists, and read aloud the names of 200 individuals who were sentenced to death in Armenia between 1936 and 1938. The full conference proceedings and reports are available at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLclo6JyCE6xmbAfVBM2mZSUvf2lUUQEjw
2025-06-15
Lecture: “Application of Infrared Imaging in Archaeology”
On June 12, the latest seminar of the Architectural Modeling Scientific Group was held in Room 34 of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography (IAE) of the NAS RA. The topic of the seminar was “Application of Infrared Imaging in Archaeology.” Arshaluys Mkrtchyan delivered a presentation outlining the methodology for using infrared imaging in archaeological research. The seminar concluded with an engaging discussion, during which participants shared questions, experiences, and suggestions.
2025-06-12
Armenian-Italian Joint Archaeological Excavations in Aruch
Since June 2025, archaeological excavations have been ongoing as part of an Armenian-Italian collaboration, initiated by the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography (IAE) of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia and the Italian Association for Mediterranean and Oriental Studies (ISMEO). The joint expedition teams are conducting excavations at the medieval palace-fortress in the village of Aruch and at the fortress and burial field in the village of Shamiram. Excavations at the Aruch fortress are being carried out under the co-leadership of Astghik Babajanyan, Scientific Secretary of the IAE, and Sergio Ferdinand, ISMEO representative. These excavations originally began in 2022. The palace-fortress dates to the 12th–13th centuries, though it remained in use in later periods. In the 20th century, residential houses and other structures were built on the site, which now complicates the work of archaeologists. Astghik Babajanyan, co-leader of the expedition, noted that the research and excavations are being conducted within the framework of the “Medieval Fortification on the Silk Road” program and will continue until June 23. Armenian and Italian specialists have also discussed plans to reinforce the excavated sections of the fortress, assess the technical condition of the Aruch temple, and explore the possibility of restoring its dome.
2025-06-12
The staff of IAE participated in the ICAANE international conference held in Lyon.
The 14th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East (14th ICAANE), an international conference dedicated to the early archaeology of the Near East, was held in Lyon, France, from June 2 to 7. The conference was attended by Dr. Ruben Badalyan, Head of the Department of Early Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the NAS RA, along with researchers Armine Harutyunyan (Ph.D.), Mariam Saribekyan, Levon Aghikyan, and Ivan Semyan. During the conference, the participants presented reports on the excavations of several Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and Early Bronze Age sites in Armenia—Hagartsin, Ayrum, Teghut, Yeghegis-1, Karnut, and Voskeblur. Their presentations also addressed the spread of the Kura-Araxes culture and Armenia’s contributions to the development of experimental archaeology.
2025-06-10
Deputy Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography Tork Dalalyan participated in the 8th Festival of Epics of the Peoples of the World held in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan
On May 28–30, Deputy Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Tork Dalalyan, participated in the 8th Festival of Epics of the Peoples of the World, held in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. As part of the festival, an international academic conference took place under the title “The Universal Nature of Epics: Typology and Main Ethnic Models”—an international scientific and practical symposium dedicated to the 130th anniversary of the renowned epic storyteller Sayakbay Karalaev, known as the “Homer of the 20th Century.” The plenary session of the symposium was chaired by Tork Dalalyan. The event brought together folklorists, epic scholars, and cultural anthropologists from over 30 countries. Tork Dalalyan presented a report on the typological characteristics of Armenian-Caucasian epics. The festival and conference provided a platform for fruitful academic discussions, proposals for future collaboration, and cultural exchange. Participants also visited the Kyrgyz National "Manas" Theater and took part in a series of cultural events and excursions.
2025-06-02
