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The Matenadaran is the Biography of our Nation An interview with Arshak Banouchyan, deputy director of the Matenadaran, [April 20, 2005] Most people think of the Matenadaran as a museum rather than as a scientific institution. What is the Matenadaran actually? The Matenadaran is certainly known as a museum to the vast majority. Its scientific work is mainly geared towards experts in the field, and that's why many people don't know about it. In addition to being a museum and a scientific institution, the Matenadaran is perceived as a spiritual establishment by most Armenians. Why is this so? Because the treasures that are housed in the Matenadaran were written or kept in the holy places of historical Armenia , where the faithful would go to worship. From the first day it was founded, for about 1500 years, it was the part of the Holy See of Echmiadzin. It has been a state scientific institution for the last 100 years. Like various museums throughout the world, the Matenadaran is also a repository of cultural values, and a place where preservation, restoration, deciphering, and research is performed. But unlike similar establishments, which were founded at a specific time, according to a specific decision, the Matenadaran came into existence along with the invention of the Armenian Alphabet, and has been enhanced and renewed, and sometimes even lost some of its richness, over time. From this point of view, we can say that Matenadaran is the biography of our people for the last 1500 years. In other countries around the world, such important institutions are supported and developed through government funding. Can our government provide enough support for the Matenadaran today? In the other countries, as a rule, similar institutions receive state funding and special privileges. In certain cases, when the institution houses a collection of the highest importance, and plays an indispensable role nationally and universally, special laws are even drawn up. These institutions cannot exist solely on state support; the cost of preserving the cultural heritage alone is a heavy burden. The Government of the Republic of Armenia pays sufficient attention to the protection and development of Matenadaran, as much as the current level of socio-economic progress permits. Funding from the government budget make it possible to solve everyday problems. Serious investments are necessary for future progress, especially for the completion of unfinished projects. But at the same time, taking into account our country's current situation, its difficulties, and real possibilities, we have not formulated any new requests. Instead we decided to take the tried and tested path found the Friends of Matenadaran Fund, with the aim of completing some of our projects with the help of charitable donations, and not to burden the government in this situation. Who are the friends of the Matenadaran? Where and how will you find them? What will the criteria of friendship be? The names of intended recipients, rescuers, and numerous friends devoted to Armenian writing have been recorded in the pages of the manuscripts in the Matenadaran by scribes for 1600 years. One woman who escaped the Genocide and massacres rescued a manuscript instead of saving her own life. I think that this proves that such Armenians can be found, and today the Friends of Matenadaran is the best way to gather devoted Armenians together.
There are a lot of funds like this, and this well-meaning initiative is nothing out of the ordinary. All funds are established for such well-meaning initiatives. Our mission is not so material, though in the end, everything has a material component. To answer this question again we must go back to the past. In each manuscript's record, it is written of the recipient that he acquired that manuscript or donated it to the church as a "spiritual son". The Armenian chronicle is the spiritual son of the Armenian people, in some sense a member of the Armenian family. We must awaken the relationship between Armenians and their cultural heritage. That relationship can take different forms, for example participation in our Friend of a Manuscript project. In this project, the names of those people who have assisted in description, restoration, research, digitizing and other work will be registered in the new records of those manuscripts. In short, I believe that encouraging the Armenian people to participate in the work of preserving and promoting our heritage is more important than raising money. Not just our manuscripts, but also our entire cultural heritage, require daily care and tending. We have a duty toward this heritage and our future, and it can't be something that's undertaken in one day. The amount of the donation doesn't matter. The assistance may be in the shape of an old or new book. What's important to us is the connection between the people and our cultural heritage. It might be thought the fund is going to provide that connection, rather than undertake projects for preservation and development. There is no need to separate the two. Recognition must come first of all, and then care for the treasures we posses. Today thousands of Armenian and foreign tourists visit Noravank and admire the beauty of that architectural complex. Imagine, if not for efforts to preserve and repair Noravank, that monument of Armenian architecture would not exist today. That's why I say that the people and their culture can't exist separately. If the culture is not within the people, if the people are not the bearers of culture, if the people are not bound by spiritual ties, they are both in danger. You may think that such organizations are founded to make up for shortages in government funding. That isn't so. For instance, in a country as strong as Great Britain there are a lot of organizations of friends of museums and libraries. And I am sure that besides raising money and implementing projects, they also provide for a spiritual connection. How will you organize the work of the Friends of the Matenadaran Fund in the Diaspora? Do you have partners there? We have representatives in about twelve countries. Of course, they are doing very important and useful work. I won't talk about them separately here. A Friends of the Matenadaran website will be set up soon. Our representatives will have their own pages and everything will be presented. All aspects of our work will be represented. What kind of projects will you suggest to the Friends of Matenadaran? What will your priorities be? The Matenadaran will define the immediate course of development within the changing socio-economic relations once again find its place in Armenian life, and work actively to promote Armenian Studies, to be a presence in the scientific life of the world its publications, its work, and its energy. This is the most important thing, and different projects will be presented on our web site. Tigran Paskevichyan For more information, please contact: Friends of the Matenadaran |
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