Ashkharbek Kalantar

Ashkharbek Kalantar (; February 11, 1884 – June 1942) was an Armenian archaeologist and historian who played an important role in the founding of archaeology in Armenia.

Born into the Armenian noble families of Loris-Melikov and Arghutians, he graduated St. Petersburg University in 1911 under Nicholas Marr. He was appointed a Fellow of the Archaeological Institute, of Imperial Russian Archaeological Society and the keeper of the Asiatic Museum in St. Petersburg. He was one of the founders of Yerevan State University. Ashkharbek Kalantar authored more than 80 scholarly articles.

Early life Ashkharbek Kalantar was born in Ardvi (in the modern-day Lori Province of Armenia) on February 11, 1884. He received his early education at the Nersisian School in Tiflis, graduating from there in 1903. He continued his studies at the St. Petersburg University with Nicholas Marr as his teacher. He terminated his studies in 1911 to become a member of the archaeological society of the University.

Excavations at Ani As a student, Kalantar in 1907 participated the archaeological excavations of Nicholas Marr in the Armenian medieval capital Ani. In 1914 he was appointed the head of the 13th Ani Archaeological excavation campaign. He was the last archaeologist to describe monuments, mostly in Ani region, which did not survive after the 1920s.

Ancient irrigation systems and Urartian inscriptions In 1910s Kalantar studied the ancient monuments in the Lori and Surmali regions, the basilica in Zor, headed the excavations in medieval monastery Vanstan (Imirzek) in Armenia and revealed its epigraphic materials. In 1917 with Nicholas Adontz he participated the II Van Archaeological expedition and studied the Urartian inscriptions there.

From 1920 to the 1930s he revealed the existence of a pre-Urartian irrigation system on Mt. Aragats and Geghama range in Armenia, discovered vishaps (stone monuments) there, studied their rock-carved figures, and published articles on the Urartian inscriptions found in Armenia.

In 1931 Kalantar directed the excavations in Old Vagharshapat.

Legacy The bronze bust of Ashkharbek Kalantar in Yerevan State University. alt=The bronze bust of Ashkharbek Kalantar in Yerevan State University. A bust of Ashkharbek Kalantar was unveiled in February 2015 in the entrance hall of Yerevan State University.

Edik Minasyan, Dean of the Faculty of History at Yerevan State University, said of Kalantar:

Later publications Ashkharbek Kalantar, Armenia: From the Stone Age to the Middle Ages, Civilisations du Proche Orient, Se´rie 1, Vol. 2, Recherches et Publications, Neuchâtel, Paris, 1994; Ashkharbek Kalantar, The Mediaeval Inscriptions of Vanstan, Armenia, Civilisations du Proche-Orient: Series 2 - Philologie, Vol. 2, Recherches et Publications, Neuchâtel, Paris, 1999; Ashkharbek Kalantar, Materials on Armenian and Urartian History (with a contribution by Mirjo Salvini), Civilisations du Proche-Orient: Series 4 - Hors Série, Neuchâtel, Paris, 2004;

From Kalantar's documents