Mother Armenia
Mother Armenia (Armenian: Մայր Հայաստան Mayr Hayastan) is a female personification of Armenia. Her most public visual rendering is a monumental statue in Victory Park overlooking the capital city of Yerevan, Armenia.
Mother Armenia statue in Yerevan
The current statue replaces a monumental statue of General Secretary Joseph Stalin that was created as a victory memorial for World War II. During Stalin's government of the Soviet Union, Grigor Harutyunyan, the first secretary of the Armenian Communist Party's Central Committee, and members of the government oversaw the construction of the monument which was completed and unveiled to the people on November 29, 1950.[1] The statue was considered a masterpiece of the sculptor Sergey Merkurov. The pedestal was designed by architect Rafayel Israyelian. Realizing that occupying a pedestal can be a short-term honour, Israyelian designed the pedestal to resemble a three-nave basilica Armenian church, as he confessed many years later "Knowing that the glory of dictators is temporary, I have built a simple three-nave Armenian basilica".[2] In contrast to the right-angled shapes of the external view, the interior is light and pleasing to the eye and resembled Echmiadzin's seventh-century St. Hripsime Church.
In spring 1962, the statue of Stalin was removed, with one soldier being killed and many injured during the process, and in 1967, the statue of Mother Armenia, designed by Ara Harutyunyan, was installed in its place.[1]
The prototype of "Mother Armenia" was a 17-year-old girl Genya Muradian. Ara Harutyunyan met her at the store and persuaded her to pose for the sculpture.[3]
"Mother Armenia" has a height of 22 metres (72 ft), thus making the overall height of the monument 51 metres (167 ft), including the pedestal. The statue is built of hammered copper while the pedestal-museum is of basalt.[4]
Symbolism
The Mother Armenia statue symbolises peace through strength. It can remind viewers of some of the prominent female figures in Armenian history, such as Sose Mayrig and others, who took up arms to help their husbands in their clashes with Turkish troops and Kurdish irregulars. It also recalls the important status and value attributed to the older female members of an Armenian family.
Its location on a hill overlooking Yerevan makes it look like a guardian of the Armenian capital. Every year on 9 May, thousands of Armenians visit the statue of Mother Armenia and lay flowers to commemorate the Armenian martyrs of the Second World War. The pedestal hosts the Mother Armenia Military Museum of the Ministry of Defense. When first built it housed a military museum dedicated to World War II. Today, a large proportion of the exhibition space is devoted to the Nagorno-Karabakh War of 1988–1994. On display are the personal belongings, weapons, and documents of participants, and the walls are decorated with their portraits. Among other historical artifacts, there is a map on which Armenian forces worked out their campaign for the Battle of Shushi.
Gallery
- Mother Armenia
- Edged forms of the heroic looking figure
- Entrance to the military museum in the base. Historical design as a stepped portal with filigree ornaments
- View of Mother Armenia monument
- Aerial view
- Mother Armenia mourning the destruction of ancient cities, Kütahya ceramic.
See also
- List of tallest statues
- Kartlis Deda
- Mother Ukraine
References
- ^ a b ""The Legend Lives On" (In Armenian)". June 23, 2018.
- ^ "Mother Armenia" needs care (In Armenian)
- ^ Amos Chappl (March 11, 2021). "Meeting 'Mother Armenia,' The Woman Behind Yerevan's Iconic Statue". RFE.
- ^ Monuments of Yerevan Archived 2011-10-02 at the Wayback Machine
External links
- Meeting 'Mother Armenia,' The Woman Behind Yerevan's Iconic Statue
- v
- t
- e
notable landmarks
- Shengavit archaeological site
- Erebuni Fortress
- Teishebaini archaeological site
- Tsiranavor Church of Avan
- Katoghike Church
- Red Bridge
- Zoravor Church
- Saint John the Baptist Church
- Blue Mosque
- Mordechai Navi Synagogue
- Saint Sarkis Cathedral
- Holy Mother of God Russian Church
- Saint Gregory Cathedral
- Yerevan Ararat Brandy Factory
- Yerevan Brandy Factory
- Mother Armenia
- Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial
- Yerevan Cascade
- Yerevan TV Tower
- Komitas Pantheon
- Yerablur Military Pantheon
- Elite Plaza Center
and recreation
- National Library
- National Archives
- Khnko Aper Children's Library
- Avetik Isahakyan Central Library
- Yerevan Opera
- Sundukyan Theatre
- H. Tumanyan Puppet Theatre
- Stanislavski Russian Theatre
- Paronyan Musical Comedy Theatre
- H. Ghaplanyan Drama Theatre
- Komitas Chamber Music House
- Moscow Cinema
- Nairi Cinema
- Yerevan Circus
- National Gallery of Armenia
- Yerevan Vernissage
- National Centre for Aesthetics
- History Museum of Armenia
- Charents Museum of Literature
- Yerevan History Museum
- Matenadaran
- Erebuni Museum
- Modern Art Museum
- House-Museum of A. Khachaturian
- Silva Kaputikyan House-Museum
- Yeghishe Charents House-Museum
- Sergei Parajanov Museum
- Ara Sargsyan and Hakob Kojoyan Museum
- Near East Art Museum
- Cafesjian Museum of Art
- ARF History Museum
- Aznavour Centre
- Komitas Museum
- Armenian Railways Museum
- Yerevan State University
- National University of Architecture and Construction
- State Medical University
- State Pedagogical University
- Komitas State Conservatory
- National Agrarian University
- National Polytechnic University
- Brusov State University of Languages
- State Institute of Theatre and Cinematography
- Institute of Physical Culture and Sport
- State Academy of Fine Arts
- State University of Economics
- Crisis Management State Academy
- Haybusak University
- American University of Armenia
- French University in Armenia
- Russian-Armenian University
- Vazgen Sargsyan Military University
- PhysMath School
- Mkhitar Sebastatsi School
- Anatole France French School
- QSI School
- Avedisian School
- Ayb School
- Chinese-Armenian Friendship School
- European University of Armenia
- Eurasia International University
- French University in Armenia
and technology
and bridges