September 3, 2010 - 16:57 AMT
Pavel Avetisyan: excavations in Nergin Gotedzor present major interest to both Armenia and Western Asia

During excavations in the area of Nergin Gotedzor, Syunik region, sealed everyday use articles going back to neolith epoch, suggesting complicated social relations, were discovered, Pavel Avetisyan, the director of the Institute of Archaeology at Armenian National Academy of Sciences (RA NAS) reported.

“Cattle bones, instruments of labor, made of Syunik obsidian, were discovered in the excavations, as well as color ceramics, supposedly imported in the region,” Avetisyan told a news conference in Yerevan. The expert pointed out the similarity between Nergin Gotedzor residents’ everyday use articles and those employed in Urmia lake-adjacent regions (Urmia is one of the three major lakes in the Armenian Highland, currently in north-western Iran).

Specialists from Armenia and French national center of science launched Nergin Gotedzor excavations in 2009. The project was sponsored by both countries.

To discover genetic affinity of north Araks inhabitants, the human remains discovered with be researched in France.

“Excavations in Nergin Gotedzor present major interest to both Armenia and Western Asia. Such findings are a factual response to absurd attacks of the neighboring countries,” the expert emphasized.