Turkey renovates Armenian monuments as gesture
(AP)
04 May 2011
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – Turkey has launched a project to conserve an
ancient Armenian cathedral and a church in what is seen as a gesture
of reconciliation toward its neighbor.
Turkey and Armenia have been locked in a bitter dispute for decades
over the mass killings of Armenians in Turkey in the last years of the
Ottoman Empire. Efforts to normalize relations have been dealt a
setback by the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the
enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan is a close Muslim ally of
Turkey.
Turkey, however, says it is committed to improving ties with Armenia,
and has already restored the 10th century Akdamar church, perched on a
rocky island in Lake Van in eastern Turkey. It has also allowed
once-yearly worship at the site as a gesture to Armenia and its own
ethnic Armenian minority.
Culture Minister Ertugrul Gunay said Tuesday the new project was being
launched in partnership with the World Monuments Fund to conserve the
remains of the cathedral and the Church of the Holy Savior in Ani, 25
miles (40 kilometers) from the eastern Turkish city of Kars.
According to the New York-based World Monuments Fund, Ani – “one of
the world’s great cities in the 10th century” – was once the site of
hundreds of religious buildings, palaces, fortifications, and other
structures. Today it stands abandoned, and the remnants of its
celebrated buildings are in a precarious state.
The site, in an earthquake-prone area, has been listed on the World
Monuments Watch since 1996.
“Ani, which is of global significance, presents particularly
complicated challenges,” Gunay said. “We hope that giving new life to
the remains of once-splendid buildings, such as the Ani Cathedral and
church, will bring new economic opportunities to the region.”
The Turkish government recently completed restoration of the Church of
Tigran Honents’ and the Mosque of Manucehr, converted from a church by
invading Seljuk Turks at Ani, which is situated right on the
Turkish-Armenian border.
The area was long off-limits in a militarized area, which has been
gradually demilitarized since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today,
it attracts tourists from around the world.
The new conservation work will primarily aim to strengthen the Ani
Cathedral and the Church of the Holy Savior against temblors, said
Bonnie Burnham, the president of WMF.
The cathedral, designed by Trdat – the chief architect of the
Bagratuni kings of Armenia who rebuilt the dome of Istanbul’s huge
Hagia Sophia church following an earthquake in the late 10th century –
is considered to be a masterpiece of medieval Armenian architecture,
the fund says. Earthquakes, however, have completely collapsed the
building’s central dome as well as its northwest corner.
Like the cathedral, the church also suffered severe quake damage and a
1930 lightning strike collapsed the southeast side of the building,
Burnham said in a statement.
“There has long been international concern about the fragile condition
of the many extraordinary ruins at Ani,” said Burnham. “We hope that
this work will usher in a new era in the life of this important site.”
According to the fund, Ani reached its cultural golden age in the
second half of the 10th century, when it became the political and
commercial center of the Bagratid Armenian kingdom. At its height, its
population exceeded 100,000 people, the fund said. By the mid-11th
century, the city began to decline due to internal strife, earthquakes
and invasions by various groups, including Seljuk Turks.
The culture minister did not say whether Turkey would also allow
prayers at Ani once the restoration is complete. The ministry on
Wednesday would not reveal the estimated cost of the project, which is
also supported by the U.S. Department of State’s Ambassadors Fund as
well as the WMF.
Osman Kavala, head of the Anadolu Kultur, a non-governmental culture
organization that helps coordinate the partnership with the WMF, said
preparations for the actual restoration work are expected to cost US$1
million (euro672,000) alone. He said the restoration is likely to
start as early as 2012 and is expected to take four years.
“This project is significant to protect the world’s cultural
heritage,” Kavala said Wednesday. “But being on the border, it might
also serve as a bridge to improve relations between Turkey and
Armenia.”
Armenians say up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks
around the time of World War I, which they call the first genocide of
the 20th century. Turkey disputes this, saying the death toll has been
inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest as the
Ottoman Empire collapsed.
From: A. Papazian