First-ever Armenian translation of the essay “Julfa on the Arax and its Funerary Monuments” presented in Armenia
On the 15th December 2015, at the Matenadaran, Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts (Yerevan, Armenia), the Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to the Republic of Armenia Erikas Petrikas had an honour to present the first-ever Armenian translation of the essay “Julfa of the Arax and its Funerary Monuments” by Jurgis Baltrušaitis and Dickran Kouymjian.
Along with the comments and texts of the authors, the essay “Julfa of the Arax and its Funerary Monuments” contains the photographs taken by famous Lithuanian Jurgis Baltrušaitis, one the most prominent European art researchers and art critics of the 20th century, great medievalist and the traveller. Ambassador Erikas Petrikas noted that Jurgis Baltrušaitis in 1928 was privileged with the unique permission to travel through Georgia and Armenia, and to take photographs of the cemetery of Julfa city (current territory of the Azerbaijan) comprising thousands of the khatchkars (cross-stones) -oldest monuments of the Armenian pastoral architecture. Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania stated that Jurgis Baltrušaitis comments and pictures rich with the views of the uniquely decorated Armenian stelas and tombstones proclaim not only the great Jurgis Baltrušaitis’ interest in the ancient Armenian architecture but offer also the sole possibility to get acquainted with the pastoral art heritage of the Caucasus region, not remained to our days.
While extending great thanks to the National University of Architecture and Construction, the co-author of the essay Mr Dickran Kouymjian, Mr Carlos Costa Ramos and Mr Armen Ghazaryan for the manifold support and help, Ambassador Erikas Petrikas had expressed his hope for the continuous cooperation and future joint projects commemorating the remembrance of Jurgis Baltrušaitis in Armenia such as the establishment of the Jurgis Baltrušaitis scholarship and the set-up of his name’s auditorium at the National University of Architecture and Construction.
At the presentation of the first-ever Armenian translation of the essay “Julfa on the Arax and its Funerary Monuments” by Jurgis Baltrušaitis and Dickran Kouymjian Armenian Minister of Culture Mrs. Hasmik Poghosyan as well as other prominent representatives of the Armenian political, cultural, art society as well as the diplomats residing in Yerevan took part.
