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Euroasian Jewish News
International Symposium "The Jewish Cemetery in Eghegis" Opens in Yeghegnadzor (Republic of Armenia)
11.05.2009
 On the 11th of May, the international symposium "The Jewish Cemetery in Eghegis" opened in Yeghegnadzor. Eghegis (located near the contemporary city Yehegnadzor) was one of the important centers of the Armenian civilization in antiquity and during the Middle Ages. It is not surprising that a Jewish cemetery dating back from the Middle Ages has been found there. This cemetery is the oldest not only in Armenia, but in the entire region. It was discovered in 1997, practically by accident, and information about it spread only through the efforts of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the personal efforts of bishop Abraham Mkrtchan. As a result of over ten years of work by researchers, archaeologists, specialists in epigraphy, with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia and the Jewish community, the cemetery was studied and restored. The symposium, which opened on the 11th of May, 2009, summarizes the results of the colossal scientific work and extensive restorations.
As the representative of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia Karen Danielyan noted in his speech at the opening ceremony, the existence of a Jewish cemetery in medieval Armenia is evidence for a tradition of coexistence and cultural interaction between the two peoples which spans many centuries. It is also necessary to note the important role of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the discovery and and preservation of this unique memorial. This role is a demonstration of religious tolerance in the republic.
 During the symposium, lectures will be read on the history of the Jews of Armenia, and the history of the cemetery itself. A brochure of the researchers Michael Stone and David Amit "The Medieval Jewish Cemetery of Eghegis" was published for the conference in Hebrew, Armenian, and English. The official opening of the cemetery after restoration will be the culmination of the scientific forum.
Approximately a hundred people are taking part in the work of the Yeghegnadzor symposium – leading researchers from Armenia and Israel, representatives of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia and representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Armenia Shmi Tsur, the leaders of the Jewish community of Armenia, as well as guests from Russia and Ukraine. The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC) was represented by the members of the General Council Rimma Vardjapetyan-Feller, Chairman of the Jewish community of Armenia, and the editor-in chief of the eajc.org website Vyacheslav Likhachev. The EAJC gives special attention to the research of the material traces of the presence of Jewish communities in the countries of the region, has financed such research previously, and will try to support similar research projects in the future.
 It is difficult to overrate the scientific and social importance of the discovery of the medieval Jewish cemetery near Yeghegnadzor. In essence, this is the oldest material evidence of a presence of a Jewish community in the region. Despite indications from written sources (though dated significantly later than the events described in them) and the existence of a stable historic tradition, which is partly based on real data, and partly on legends of the existence of Jews in Armenia from the moment of the conquering of Jerusalem by the Babylonian king Nabuchodonosor II in 586 B.C., there was no material evidence for these data. The groups of Jews who, according to written sources, were resettled in Armenia from Palestine in I B.C. By the kings Tigran II and Artavazd. Despite that in IV century A.D., when Armenia was defeated by the Persian army, most Jews were driven away as captives, there was a tradition which stated that certain groups of Jews remained in Armenia until 13-14th century A.D. The cemetery discovered near Yehegnadzor gave irrefutable evidence for the existence of a community in that time period: several dozen headstones date from 1266 to 1346.
The symposium will continue its work up to the 12th of May.
A detailed report on the work of the symposium will be published on eajc.org as soon as possible.
On photo (left to right): uppermost – Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Armenia Shemi Tsur; in the middle – professor Michael Stone (Jewish University in Jerusalem); below – the Chairman of the Jewish Community of Armenia, member of the General Council of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress Rimma Varjapetyan-Feller, and professor Haggai Ben-Shammai (Jewish University in Jerusalem.)
By Vyacheslav Likhachev
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