Government to purchase historic Armenian artifact at international auction for national museum
As part of an ongoing effort to find and retrieve Armenian cultural heritage artifacts that have appeared in private collections or auctions around the world, the Armenian government decided to acquire a monumental church door panel that will be auctioned in London.
During the Cabinet meeting, the government approved the allocation of 175.3 million drams (over $455,000) to acquire the historic artifact.
The monumental Armenian church door panel was made in 1188, and the artifact will be displayed at the History Museum of Armenia.
Radiocarbon analyses verified the dating.
“The carvings and ornamental design system are fully in line with Armenian medieval artistic traditions and the culture characteristic of the Bagratuni period. Until the 1990s, only eight similar wooden door panels were known to us, and, in general, examples of wood carving are exceptional. In this case, we are talking about one of these eight,” said Zhanna Andreasyan, Minister of Education, Culture, Science, and Sport.
The artifact appeared in international circulation in the 1980s and was later found in a private collection in New York.
Andreasyan did not elaborate, but the Sam Fogg London art dealership website features a monumental door panel carved for the Haghpat Monastery in Armenia, dated to 1188.
As part of efforts to find other Armenian cultural heritage artifacts, the Armenian government recently acquired a painting by Arshile Gorky, which will soon be transported to Armenia.
