Zorats Karer

Zorats Karer

Type
necropolis
Location
Country	Armenia
Nearest town	Sisian, Syunik Province
Coordinates	39.5507°N 46.0286°E / 39.5507; 46.0286

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Zorats Karer (Zorac‘ K‘arer, Zorac Qarer, Zorakarer, Zorakar Armenian: Զորաց Քարեր), also called Karahunj or Carahunge) is an archaeological site near the city of Sisian in the Syunik province of Armenia.

Description

Karahunj stone circle

The site is located on a rocky promontory near Sisian. About 223 large stone tombs can be found in the area. It was explored by a team of archaeologists from the Institut für Vorderasiatische Archäologie, University of Munich who published their findings in 2000. They concluded that "in contrast to the opinion that Zorakarer may be called an Armenian Stonehenge", Zorats Karer "was mainly a necropolis from the Middle Bronze Age to the Iron Age." The Munich archaeologists add that it may have served "as a place of refuge in times of war", possibly in the Hellenistic - Roman period (c. 300 BC - 300 AD). A wall of rocks and compacted soil (loam) was built around the site with vertical rocks plugged into it for reinforcement: today only these upright rocks remain.

About 84 of the stones feature a circular hole, although only about 50 of the stones survive. They have been of interest to Russian and Armenian archaeoastronomists who have suggested that the standing stones could have been used for astronomical observation. This suggestion was made by observers who noted four stone holes which could be claimed to be sighted at the point on the horizon where the sun rises on midsummer's day. Four others standing stones display holes which observers claimed point where the sun sets on the same day. However, this must remain conjectural as the holes are relatively unweathered and may not even be prehistoric in origin.

In the nearby city of Sisian, there is a small museum dedicated to findings in the area, including palaeolithic petroglyphs found on mountain tops in the area, and grave artefacts form the Bronze Age burial site with over 200 shaft graves.

In 2004 the site was officially named the Karahunj (Carahunge) Observatory, by Parliamentary decree (Government decision No. 1095-n, July 29, 2004).^{[citation needed]}

Research and Expeditions

Stone with a circular hole

There have been several research expeditions to study Zorats Karer over several decades. The most extensive research has been carried out by Paris Herouni and by Elma Parsamyan of Biurakan Observatory.

According to Herouni, the site was "a temple with a large and developed observatory, and also a university". He thinks that the temple was dedicated to the Armenian sun-god Ari. He made a survey of the site and claimed it was 7600–4500 years old.

Herouni has proposed a further hypothesis, that some stones of the monument mirror the biggest star of the Cygnus constellation - Deneb. A stone discovered in Gobekli Tepe in modern Turkey excavated by German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt, shows the map of the night sky (Cygnus constellation), which in the Karahunj monument, as V. Vahradyan noticed, represents the same constellation, mirroring the Zorats Karer site.^{[citation needed]}

In September 2010 Oxford Astrophysicist Mihran Vardanyan led the Oxford University-Royal Geographical Society joint Expedition Stars & Stones 2010, to check the previous results as well as to produce modern 3d maps and an archeological survey of the site.

Vardanyan claimed the site could be the oldest observatory in the world. He said that stone circles are highly controversial with some scholars highly sceptical of the astronomical significance of sites such as Zorats Karer. “The most commonly accepted theory about the meaning of Qara Hunge is that it is an ancient burial ground, or necropolis – a place to act as a bridge between the earth and the heavens in the cyclical journey of the soul involving life, death and rebirth.” “The necropolis thesis is certainly true, but after our initial investigations of the central circle, it is clear the site was aligned to the sun, most likely aligned to the moon and – what is really exciting, possibly even some stars or planets – owing to the placement of small holes drilled through the monoliths and aimed at the horizon. It is these holes which makes this exceptional megalithic site unique out of all similar European sites.”

Depictions in media/ Popular culture

In December, 2010 Zorats Karer was featured on an episode of the History Channel show, Ancient Aliens on episode 14, titled "Unexplained Structures". The theme was suggested by Mihran Vardanyan, following the recent discovery of more than 300 exoplanets by NASA’s Kepler planet-finding satellite in a small patch of sky in the Cygnus constellation, and linking this with Herouni's earlier observations concerning Deneb.^{[citation needed]}

Tourism Development

Mihran Vardanyan has suggested that Karahunj, along with Tatev Monstery, cave complexes and a rich collection of petroglyphs, offers opportunities for development of tourism in the region. The development program was also supported by Armenian company Gerezman Solutions. The overall program should cover construction of new roads, parking spaces, toilets , smoking rooms, information banners, lights, audio system, holographic 3d reconstruction of the monument and electronic tourist guides.^{[citation needed]}

Gallery

• Karahunj
• 

  One of the stones with a hole in it

• 

  Stones row

• 

  Interior part

• 

  Circular stones row

• 

  Another view

See also

• Megalith

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Ruggles, Clive (2005). Ancient Astronomy. ABC CLIO. ISBN 1-85109-477-6. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Q9YYqiXm-lkC&pg=PA67&lpg=PA67&dq=herouni+observatory&source=bl&ots=aCnz-SFiXe&sig=dzLNpzCZC2fD8T3HWCOBH3LQ4V8&hl=en&ei=jMVoSoa8HuDMjAeyve2uCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=30. 

External links

• Zorats Karer (Karahunj)