Armenia

The nation of Armenia is ancient. The capital of Armenia, Yerevan, dates back to the 8^th century BCE.

The skyline of Yerevan is dominated by Mount Ararat. Armenia is a land at the heart of human history.

Carahunge - an ancient astronomical observatory

In the Areni-1 cave complex, the oldest known shoe was recently found. It has been dated to be 5,500 years old.

The excavations provide evidence of wine making.

The geology offered the possibility of living in caves. which had many benefits, including moderating of temperature and protection from enemies.

The cave village below at Khndzoresk was for centuries home to thousands. It was left in the 1950s when the inhabitants moved to a new site.

The interior of a cave dwelling.

Armenia was the first state to declare itself a Christian country in 301 CE. After being imprisoned in a pit for 13 years, St. Gregory the Illuminator persuaded the king to follow the Christian faith.

Early in the 5th century CE, the Armenian lands were split between the Byzantine and Persian empires. Western Armenia was part of the Byzantine and then Ottoman empire. In the last years of the Ottoman empire the Armenian people suffered greatly in a number of murderous attacks culminating in the Genocide of 1915,

Genocide Memorial and Museum in Yerevan

The border between Armenia and Turkey. Guarded by the Russian army.

The Persian empire was followed by the Russian empire, later the Soviet empire, as the ruler of Eastern Armenia. Under Soviet rule, Armenia was industrialised. Many of its educated class were oppressed and executed, notably in the Great Terror led by Stalin. Armenia emerged from the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.