Armenia to Acquire Unique Sample from London International Auction: Araik Harutyunyan

The head of the Prime Minister's office, Araik Harutyunyan, shared a photo on his social media page, stating: “This unique sample of medieval Armenian woodwork—the door leaf from a 12th-century Armenian church—will be acquired from the London international auction as per today’s government decision and will be transferred to the Museum of History of Armenia.”

During the government meeting on December 18, it was reported that 175 million 360 thousand drams would be allocated from the reserve fund to purchase this exceptional cultural value from the London international auction, which is a carved wooden door leaf made in 1188.

“Until the 1990s, we were only aware of 8 such pieces, and the samples of wooden carvings are unique. In this particular case, we refer to one specimen of those 8, which had been circulated since the late 1980s and was found in a private collection in New York. Recently, we acquired a painting by Arshile Gorky, which will soon be in Armenia; we noticed this door leaf during that work. This is a leaf used for the entrance of ancient Armenian churches, characteristic of the Bagratid era. We have also conducted corresponding radiocarbon analyses that confirm its age. There are also published articles that attest to the cultural significance of the door. We also dispatched an expert to confirm on-site that what we are acquiring is of exceptional importance. We plan to display the leaf in the Museum of History of Armenia,” announced Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan.