The Armenian Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports (MoESCS) has granted monument status to 15 historical and cultural structures located in Yerevan and various provinces of the country. This decision was made during the fifth session of the ministry’s Expert Commission this year and includes both local and national heritage sites.
In Yerevan, local monument status was awarded to the former “Nairi” Cinema building on Mashtots Avenue (1952–1954), the A. Chekhov School No. 55 building on Baghramyan Avenue (1947–1951), and the Physics Institute of the Armenian SSR Academy of Sciences on Baghramyan Avenue (1948). In Lori Province, the “Chinese Bookstore Building” in Vanadzor (1954) and the “Palanduzants” residential house on Zoravar Andranik Street (19th century, late half) were recognized as local heritage sites. Additionally, the rock-hewn “Ambari Mill” in Chiva village, Vayots Dzor Province (13th–14th centuries), has been included in the list of local monuments.
National monument status was granted to the burial site in Hartagyugh village, Lori Province (3rd–1st millennium BCE), the open-air Lower Paleolithic site “Nor Geghi-1” in Nor Geghi village, Kotayk Province, and several khachkars (cross-stones) in Syunik Province, including those in Kapan and Arajadzor. The “Vardanes” settlement in Chiva village, Vayots Dzor Province (10th–15th centuries), along with its cemetery (7th–14th centuries) and stelae (7th–10th centuries), also received national monument status.
Additionally, protective zoning projects for 30 other monuments were reviewed, including the “Tsaghkavank” settlement site in Kotayk Province (7th–17th centuries) and the “Harants Hermitage” monastic complex in Syunik Province (1608–1613). These proposals will be forwarded to local and state authorities for approval as per the established procedures.
