VIVACELL-MTS’ SUPPORTED WITH INSTALLATION OF MULTILANGUAGE INFORMATION PANELS IN SEVAN MONASTERY

ArmInfo
2009-08-11 12:37:00

ArmInfo. VivaCell-MTS, a subsidiary of Mobile TeleSystems OJSC ("MTS" –
NYSE: MBT) and the Armenian Monuments Awareness Project (AMAP) today
announce the installation of multilanguage information panels near
Sevanavank, which marks the seventh site for which AMAP has produced
information panels this year and a total of 12 since the project was
launched last year.

AMAP receives major sponsorship from VivaCell-MTS and is also
supported by the Honorary Consul of Italy and by the United States
Agency for International Development (USAID) through its Competitive
Armenia Private Sector (CAPS) program. This project is an important
component of VivaCell-MTS’ efforts to help celebrate and raise
awareness of Armenian historic and natural monuments, to enhance
the visitor experience at the sites while promoting Armenia as a
tourism destination.

History points to Lusavorich’s entry into the Sevan region,
establishing two churches at the site; St. Harutiun and St. Karapet
(John the Baptist).

According to an inscription on the south wall of St. Arakelots (Holy
Apostle) Church at the site, the 9th century expansion is attributed
to Princess Mariam, the daughter of the founder of the Bagratuni
dynasty, Ashot I Bagratuni. Medieval inhabitants include the 10th
century historian and Catholicos Hovhannes Draskhanakertsi, and
Ashot II (Ashot Yerkat or Ashot of Iron) who led his armies against
foreign rulers. The king and his regiment camped on the island in
924/925, winning a decisive victory against the enemy, ensuring the
re-establishment of Armenian independence and securing Bagratuni
rule. Afterwards, Sevanavank became an important pilgrimage site.

Abandoned during the Soviet period (St. Astvatsatsin was demolished
in 1931 and its stone used to build a holiday house in Sevan) and
badly damaged in the 1936 earthquake, the monastery was not revived
until the 1990s and is undergoing reconstruction. It remains one of
Armenia’s most popular destinations.