YEREVAN, MAY 4, ARMENPRESS. The political non-recognition of Artsakh impacts the organization of researching cultural values, head of the YSU cultural studies faculty and leader of the excavation team of Artsakh’s Tigranakert Hamlet Petrosyan told a press conference in ARMENPRESS, adding that creating international cooperation is rather difficult.

“The Artsakhi authorities pay special attention to local archaeological works. But there is an issue of expanding financial possibilities. The fact that Artsakh isn’t politically recognized, we’re unable to create international cooperation. Individual researchers arrive and cooperate with us, but they are represented as individuals not institutions”, Petrosyan said.

According to him, the fact that Artsakh is politically unrecognized impacts the organization of research of cultural and historic-archaeological values. He mentioned that international organization, whose aim is to consider culture a priority, don’t make it priority in their work whatsoever.

“Artsakh is not recognized, but the locals have a right of culture. Whereas international structures do the opposite. According to the stance of these structures, if Artsakh is unrecognized, then organizing research of cultural heritage is also banned. Therefore it is difficult to create institutional cooperation on an international level”, he said.

Petrosyan mentioned that Azerbaijan is actively working in this issue on an official level. This means Armenian authorities and relevant institutions must to some degree get involved in this policy.

Speaking on excavations, he said they have already begun working on Tigranakert’s tomb field.

The expedition team excavated a large tomb last year, and found four silver Parthian coins. They also expect to find Tigran Mets’ coins, if works continue at this pace. If financial resources are increased, the team will be able to open the entrance of the fortress which was built by Tigran Mets. Records are expected to be found there.

The team also began excavations in the Handaberd monastery, where the true Armenianness of Karvajar is shown.

More than 70 Armenian records and more than 120 cross-stones have been discovered. A book has been published entitled ‘The Handaberd Monastery and excavations”.

As results of excavations in Shushi, it was possible to prove that a commercial road existed in the 12th and 13th centuries in the Hnot Gorge