History of the Study of Submerged Monuments of Armenia According to the Archival Documents of the Protection Service

Reservoirs are places of water accumulation, which are built on rivers, in canyons, by building dams in the narrowest part of their width. The flowing waters are collected in the reservoir through the dam and used for agricultural, energy and other purposes. The tradition of building reservoirs (dams) in Armenia and the Near Eastern region dates back to prehistoric times, since the Bronze-Iron Ages, reaching its maximum volume and quantity in the second half of the 20^th century. Although reservoirs are considered to be important tools of economic development, they have a negative impact on immovable historical and cultural monuments located in the submerged zone, causing their partial or complete destruction.

The funds of the Service for Protection of Historical Environment and Historical-Cultural Museum-Reserves (Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the RA) store remarkable documents, measurements and photographs of the 1960–1980s on the archaeological monuments located in the submerged zone of the Akhuryan, Aparan, Berkaber, Tolors reservoirs and the unfinished Kaps reservoir, their study and history of protection.

Like all over the world, Armenia has great experience in organizing the protection of monuments located in submerged zones. As studies show, this experiment was not always successful also in Armenia, as a result of which many important historical monuments, such as the medieval bridge of Akhuryan were lost.