Pavel Avetisyan, Director of Institute of Archeology and Ethnography at NAS RA, told Sputnik Armenia that the existence of a 4,000-year-old mausoleum in Dalma Gardens is a revelation even for archaeologists.
Almost all the districts of Yerevan are built on former tombstones. The new mausoleum found in Dalma, according to the archaeologist, is no more valuable than the remains of the Urartian irrigation system in the area.
The oldest structures found in the area, he said, were still remnants of canals in the Van Kingdom.
When asked if the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of e National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia intends to excavate the site after being informed about the new Dalma Gardens Tomb, Avetisyan answered that besides the discovery, it is important to preserve these monuments.
“25-30 such tombs are destroyed and looted in Armenia every day. There is another tomb. It is important that they are preserved after detection and fixation. After all, it's not a weird monument. Much more important are the remains of the vineyards of the Dalma. If they find something else that was preserved in ancient times, well, let them find it, preserve it,” he said.
January 20, 2020 at 15:53