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<< Our Photo Pages >> Areni-1 Cave - Cave or Rock Shelter in Armenia

Submitted by Andy B on Wednesday, 21 September 2011  Page Views: 13831

Natural PlacesSite Name: Areni-1 Cave
Country: Armenia
NOTE: This site is 21.14 km away from the location you searched for.

Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Nearest Town: Vayots Dzor province
Latitude: 39.730361N  Longitude: 45.203722E
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
no data Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
4 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
3 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

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Areni-1 Cave
Areni-1 Cave submitted by Andy B : Panorama of the Areni-1 cave site along the Arpa River in southern Armenia near the town of Areni. The cave is the location of the world's oldest known winery and where the world's oldest known shoe has been found. Creative commons image by Serouj Site in Armenia (Vote or comment on this photo)
Cave or Rock Shelter in Armenia. Areni-1 is a large karstic cave that contains archaeological cultural strata spanning from the Neolithic to late medieval times. Between 2007 and 2009, excavations were carried out in the cave.

A 5,500 year old shoe, the oldest leather shoe yet found in the world, has been unearthed here by a team of international archaeologists.

The cow-hide shoe dates back to ~ 3,500 BC and is in perfect condition. It was made of a single piece of leather and was shaped to fit the wearer's foot. It contained grass, although the archaeologists were uncertain as to whether this was to keep the foot warm or to maintain the shape of the shoe, a precursor to the modern shoe-tree perhaps? "It is not known whether the shoe belonged to a man or woman," said lead author of the research, Dr Ron Pinhasi, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland "as while small (European size 37; US size 7 women), the shoe could well have fitted a man from that era." The cave is situated in the Vayotz Dzor province of Armenia, on the Armenian, Iranian, Nackhichevanian and Turkish borders, and was known to regional archaeologists due to its visibility from the highway below.

The stable, cool and dry conditions in the cave resulted in exceptional preservation of the various objects that were found, which included large containers, many of which held well-preserved wheat and barley, apricots and other edible plants. The preservation was also helped by the fact that the floor of the cave was covered by a thick layer of sheep dung which acted as a solid seal over the objects, preserving them beautifully over the millennia!

"We thought initially that the shoe and other objects were about 600-700 years old because they were in such good condition," said Dr Pinhasi. "It was only when the material was dated by the two radiocarbon laboratories in Oxford, UK, and in California, US that we realised that the shoe was older by a few hundred years than the shoes worn by Ötzi, the Iceman."

More, with photos at Physorg and the original paper has been published in the online scientific journal PLoS ONE.

Pinhasi R, Gasparian B, Areshian G, Zardaryan D, Smith A, et al. (2010)First Direct Evidence of Chalcolithic Footwear from the Near Eastern Highlands. PLoS ONE 5(6): e10984. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0010984


With thanks to Equinox

Note: A 5,900-year-old women’s skirt is the latest discovery from this remarkable Armenian cave
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Areni-1 Cave
Areni-1 Cave submitted by Andy B : As of 2010, the oldest known leather shoe, recovered at the base of a Chalcolithic pit in the cave of Areni-1, Vayots Dzor, Armenia. Source: Part of figure 1 from: 2010 First Direct Evidence of Chalcolithic Footwear from the Near Eastern Highlands. PLoS ONE 5(6): e10984. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0010984 Creative commons image Site in Armenia (Vote or comment on this photo)

Areni-1 Cave
Areni-1 Cave submitted by Andy B : Entrance to the Areni-1 cave in southern Armenia near the town of Areni. The cave is the location of the world's oldest known winery and where the world's oldest known shoe has been found. Creative commons image by Serouj Site in Armenia (Vote or comment on this photo)

Areni-1 Cave
Areni-1 Cave submitted by Andy B : View of the canyon, Arpa River and vineyards from the Areni-1 cave complex in southern Armenia near the town of Areni. Creative commons image by Serouj Site in Armenia (Vote or comment on this photo)

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ARMENIE ARENI Cave 1
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"Areni-1 Cave" | Login/Create an Account | 5 News and Comments
  
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5,900-year-old women’s skirt discovered in Armenian cave by davidmorgan on Tuesday, 20 September 2011
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Excavations at Areni 1 Cave in Armenia’s Vayots Dzor region unearthed a more-than-5,900-year-old women’s straw-woven skirt, Armenian Archaeology and Ethnography Institute Director Pavel Avetisyan told Armenian News-News.am.

Avetisyan informed that this artifact was discovered in 2010 and, even though they had informed about this precious item at the time, interest toward it grew further only recently.

“The women’s clothing dates back to 39th century BC. So far we have discovered the skirt’s parts, which were superbly preserved. It is an amazing material with rhythmic color hues, and other remnants of the straw-woven material were also discovered. Such thing is recorded in Armenia for the first time,” Avetisyan noted.

According to Archaeology and Ethnography Institute’s director, the artifact is currently under their care, but it will soon be sent to the restorer who, until the arrival of French specialists, will work on its restoration. Pavel Avetisyan added that, after the final conservation process, the skirt will be exhibited at the History Museum of Armenia.

Areni 1 is the same cave where the world’s oldest leather shoe (more than 5,500 years old), wine-press, as well as flaggy items and part of a mummified goat’s body were discovered.

http://news.am/eng/news/73915.html

Submitted by coldrum.
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Archaeologists Unearth the World's Oldest Wine Press by davidmorgan on Tuesday, 15 February 2011
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Talk about vintage. Archeologists working in what is now southern Armenia have discovered the world's oldest winery, and used biochemicals to identify a 6,000-year old dry red wine.

"This is, so far, the oldest relatively complete wine production facility, with its press, fermentation vats and storage jars in situ," says Hans Barnard, the lead author of an article about the excavation published today in the Journal of Archaeological Science. The caveside winery, they hypothesize, did not exist to supply wine for casual drinkers. It was more likely used to produce a special brew for mourners attending ceremonies at a nearby cemetery.

Using carbon dating, the archaeologists determined that a desiccated grape vine found near the wine press was grown around 4000 B.C. That pre-dates all other known wine-making sites by 1,000 years. The same team of American, Armenian and Irish archaeologists found the world's oldest leather shoe—around 5,500 years old—in the same cave complex last year.

"This was a relatively small installation related to the ritual inside the cave. For daily consumption they would have had much larger wine presses in the regular settlement," Gregory Areshian, a team member from the University of California, Los Angeles, told Reuters. Areshian, who was deputy prime minister of the newly independent Republic of Armenia in 1991, also explained that the wine-makers produced merlots and cabernet sauvignons. The press itself is a shallow clay basin three feet in diameter, and is surrounded by grape seeds and dried-out grape vines.

The cave complex, known as Areni-1, is in the Little Caucasus Mountains near Armenia's southern border with Iran. (via ABC News, Australia.)

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/01/11/archaeologists-unearth-the-worlds-oldest-wine-press/#ixzz1AlrPqH2l

Submitted by coldrum.
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Expedition discovers mummified goat in Areni cave by davidmorgan on Monday, 22 November 2010
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An expedition excavating Areni cave discovered a mummified goat – head, part of body, perhaps, also brain, head of the Armenian party in the expedition, Boris Gasparyan told reporters.

He supposes the mummified goat is 1000-1500 years older than Egyptian mummies.

According to Pavel Avetisyan, Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Egyptian mummifications are man-made while Areni cave mummifications are triggered by environment.

The expert said the mummified goat gives a possibility to study the process of domestication of animals. If scientists prove that the goat dates from late 5th millennium or early 4th millennium BC, they will have a good basis to study wild goat species.

http://www.aysor.am/en/news/2010/10/26/boris-gasparyan2/

Submitted by coldrum.
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Ancient Clay tombs in Armenia -More than Ancient Shoe Found in Cave. by bat400 on Sunday, 21 November 2010
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Well-preserved burial places of people of the eneolithic age have been found in the caves of Arni 1, Vaiots Dzor, Armenia. Excavations are conducted in cooperation with archeologists from the University of California (USA) and University College Cork (UCC) (Ireland), head of the Armenian team Boris Gasparyan said.

He said that the specialists have found the bodies of adults and children in clay tombs. Children’s bodies are intact, whereas the adults were dismembered. The find is a unique opportunity to find out the children’s genetic code by means of DNA analyses. This, in turn, will supply scientists with valuable information on the humans’ genetic evolution.

The excavations are of paramount importance for putting together the picture of Armenia’s ancient past and of the cultural and historical picture of Western Asia in the eneolithic age. This year the archeologists have found a drinking horn of the eneolithic age in Areni 1. The excavations started in 2007, and the most ancient leather shoe was found in a cave the next year.



For more, see news.am/eng/news/35940.html.
Article submitted by coldrum.
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Archeologists and officials divided over care of ancient shoe by Andy B on Friday, 15 October 2010
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Armenian archeologists are worried about the future of the world’s oldest (5,500-year-old) leather shoe, found in a cave in Armenian province Vayots Dzor in 2008. It has not been fully examined yet; conservation issues of the shoe are not settled, and specialists are indignant that government officials take no steps to preserve it.

The shoe which is now displayed at the Yerevan History Museum, was found during the excavations in a cave conditionally called Areni-1 which is part of The Arpa River Valley Monument. The expedition consisted of representatives from three countries – Armenia, Northern Ireland, and the United States. News of the world’s most ancient shoe first appeared in mass media last June, and within two days at least 3 billion readers learned of it from posts on CNN and other sites.

Inside the cave where the oldest shoe and other important artifacts, including a winery, were found.
Now, however, hard feelings, perhaps bruised egos, and apparent carelessness by the Ministry of Culture delay the possibility of exposing even more significant treasures discovered in Areni that would arguably serve to put Armenia in the world spotlight.

Boris Gasparyan, of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography at the RA National Academy of Sciences, head of the Armenian archeological expedition, is extremely concerned about the further examination of the ancient shoe and says he himself had time enough only to estimate the age of the shoe and learn a little bit about how it was made, before it was taken custody by the state history museum.

“It is impossible to carry out another kind of examination of the shoe in Armenia, because of the lack of proper laboratories, equipment and specialists,” he says.

The historical shoe is currently hosted by the Yerevan History Museum. Director of the museum Anelka Grigoryan says that the shoe is preserved with appropriate light and temperature regime, and there is no need to worry.

However, specialists are still worried.

Archeologist Gregory Areshian, head of the American expedition, says when the shoe was discovered, it was well-preserved, but now it must be conserved.

“It will start getting dry and in some ten years it will completely fall apart,” says Areshian.

According to the order by which archeological excavations are held, artifacts must be delivered to the State two years after the excavations. Gasparyan says that the legislation regulating archeology is imperfect; there is no law on archeology in Armenia.

According to that order, it is the head of the expedition who must decide which museum the artifact must be delivered to, something that has not been the case with the oldest shoe.

“Nobody asked me anything. The Ministry of Culture phoned our director and said that the President of Armenia [Serzh Sargsyan] wanted to see the shoe. We suggested that they come and see it at our institute. But they said it was not appropriate, so it was decided to take the shoe to the museum and register it. And once it is registered we do not have legal right to deal with it anymore,” says Gasparyan.

Areshian says that the museum and the Ministry of Culture of Armenia must take care of the conservation issues. According to him, international institutions specializing in conservation of leather items can provide technical assistance to Armenia in this regard.

The Public Relations Department of the Ministry of Culture told ArmeniaNow to address all shoe-related questions to the Yerevan History Museum.

The director of the museum said they have turned to certain restoration centers (in Oxford and Germany) for assistance and are waiting for their response.

“We are currently discussing the issue of further examination and maintenance of the shoe with the Restoration Center of Matenadaran [Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts] to make the ri

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