Bronze objects, pottery, porcelain, paper, parchment…
The archaeological, ethnographic, and bibliographic materials restored by the Armenian specialists in recent years have been displayed at the Mesrop Mashtots Matenadaran (the Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts) in Yerevan. The aim of the exhibition entitled “Restoration in Armenia” is to show the rich cultural materials before and after restoration.
Ara Haytayan ։ Curator of the exhibition “Restoration in Armenia”
– This exhibition aims to give a common man a chance to interact with the restorer through a video film, to see the restorer’s “kitchen” and the material before and after restoration. A period of about 5000 years of cultural life is presented. Sometimes they deliberately tried to draw parallels between different epochs to see the common lines by which Metsamor can be connected to the Early Middle Ages, the Early Middle Ages to the Late Middle Ages up to Saryan.
The exhibits have an extended chronology. It includes items from the Early Bronze Age till the mid-20th century, for example, bronze statues, black and red pottery, fabric, paper, parchment, and oil paintings. The geographical coverage is also wide: Constantinople, Madras, Russia, Nor Jugha (New Julfa), Syria, historic Armenia and the Republic of Armenia.
The Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts, the “Scientific Research Centre for Historical and Cultural Heritage” SNCO, the “Service for the Protection of Historical Environment and Cultural Museum-Reservations” SNCO, “Erebuni” Historical and Archaeological Museum-Reserve, the “History Museum of Armenia” SNCO, the “National Gallery of Armenia” SNCO, the “National Archives of Armenia” SNCO and the Museums of the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin took part in the exhibition. The “Service for the Protection of Historical Environment and Cultural Museum-Reservations” SNCO has presented 15 items at the exhibition: part of a horse bridle, a dagger, pendants, a flabellum from the collection of “Gndevank”, a pithos (jar) found in the territory of the “Metsamor” Historical and Archaeological Museum-Reserve by the Armenian-Polish expedition and other items kept in the “Archaeology” stock.
The exhibition entitled “Restoration in Armenia” will run until June 2023.
