Tweet
DIYARBAKıR CHURCH TO DISPLAY ARMENIAN LEGACY
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 10 2013
DİYARBAKIR - Anadolu Agency
One of Diyarbakır's most famous churches, the Armenian church of
Surp Giragos, is set to become a city museum hosting artwork and
artifacts depicting the Armenian history in the city.
Earlier, the Hurriyet Daily News reported that Diyarbakır Metropolitan
Mayor Osman Baydemir and Surp Giragos Armenian Foundation President
Ergun Ayık had signed a protocol to turn the church, which was
recently restored and opened to prayer, into a museum.
According to the protocol, the church's Hıdır İlyas section will
be given to the municipality and converted into a museum featuring
belongings and ethnographic artifacts.
Ayık said the church was the largest church in the Middle East but was
in ruins until it was restored and reopened to worship three years ago.
Noting that the church was surrounded by many famous buildings and
artifacts in the city, Ayık said, "The representatives are evaluating
the buildings around the church."
The Diyarbakır City Museum will display Armenian heritage and
Armenian art. "We are currently meeting with the municipality and we
have signed a protocol to open this part," Ayık said.
"We will first collect artifacts before decorating the museum. The
decorations and the curation will be made according to the artifacts,"
said Ayık, noting that there would be information about the family,
social and cultural life of Armenians.
Letters from Lice
Very few artifacts have survived over the past 100 years, but Ayık
said they were able to collect letters from 1913 from a family who
lived in the province's Lice district, as well as kitchen appliances,
musical instruments and other examples of writings from elsewhere.
During the last 100 years, many artifacts that belonged to Armenian
families have been lost, he said. "We are currently collecting
artifacts to display in the museum. This is the first time that
something like this has happened in Turkey, and many people are
approaching this with suspicion."
The written documents are very valuable because they reflect the
lifestyle of Armenians at the time, he said. "We have collected
these documents from Turkey and also from foreign countries. We have
succeeded in collecting these artifacts."
Noting that there were also many financial documents, Ayık said
these revealed the debts and the trade that Armenians had in history.
Artifacts in Istanbul
The artifacts that have been collected have been sent to Istanbul to
be analyzed and researched.
Collecting the data and the artifacts has taken a long time, he said,
adding that the job was an important task that only professionals
could do.
After analyzing the works, the artifact will be sent to the museum
for display.
Surp Giragos, which boasts seven altars, originally had an earthen
roof, although a new roof of wood was subsequently erected over the
restored church. It was closed in 1915-1916 before being returned to
the local Armenian community in 1960.
A new bell that was made for the reopened church was made in Russia
especially for the place of worship.
September/10/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/diyarbakir-church-to-display-armenian-legacy.aspx?pageID=238&nID=54108&NewsCatID=375
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 10 2013
DİYARBAKIR - Anadolu Agency
One of Diyarbakır's most famous churches, the Armenian church of
Surp Giragos, is set to become a city museum hosting artwork and
artifacts depicting the Armenian history in the city.
Earlier, the Hurriyet Daily News reported that Diyarbakır Metropolitan
Mayor Osman Baydemir and Surp Giragos Armenian Foundation President
Ergun Ayık had signed a protocol to turn the church, which was
recently restored and opened to prayer, into a museum.
According to the protocol, the church's Hıdır İlyas section will
be given to the municipality and converted into a museum featuring
belongings and ethnographic artifacts.
Ayık said the church was the largest church in the Middle East but was
in ruins until it was restored and reopened to worship three years ago.
Noting that the church was surrounded by many famous buildings and
artifacts in the city, Ayık said, "The representatives are evaluating
the buildings around the church."
The Diyarbakır City Museum will display Armenian heritage and
Armenian art. "We are currently meeting with the municipality and we
have signed a protocol to open this part," Ayık said.
"We will first collect artifacts before decorating the museum. The
decorations and the curation will be made according to the artifacts,"
said Ayık, noting that there would be information about the family,
social and cultural life of Armenians.
Letters from Lice
Very few artifacts have survived over the past 100 years, but Ayık
said they were able to collect letters from 1913 from a family who
lived in the province's Lice district, as well as kitchen appliances,
musical instruments and other examples of writings from elsewhere.
During the last 100 years, many artifacts that belonged to Armenian
families have been lost, he said. "We are currently collecting
artifacts to display in the museum. This is the first time that
something like this has happened in Turkey, and many people are
approaching this with suspicion."
The written documents are very valuable because they reflect the
lifestyle of Armenians at the time, he said. "We have collected
these documents from Turkey and also from foreign countries. We have
succeeded in collecting these artifacts."
Noting that there were also many financial documents, Ayık said
these revealed the debts and the trade that Armenians had in history.
Artifacts in Istanbul
The artifacts that have been collected have been sent to Istanbul to
be analyzed and researched.
Collecting the data and the artifacts has taken a long time, he said,
adding that the job was an important task that only professionals
could do.
After analyzing the works, the artifact will be sent to the museum
for display.
Surp Giragos, which boasts seven altars, originally had an earthen
roof, although a new roof of wood was subsequently erected over the
restored church. It was closed in 1915-1916 before being returned to
the local Armenian community in 1960.
A new bell that was made for the reopened church was made in Russia
especially for the place of worship.
September/10/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/diyarbakir-church-to-display-armenian-legacy.aspx?pageID=238&nID=54108&NewsCatID=375