As said, the first and foremost reason foreign visitors would want to travel all the way to Kars is to visit the ruins of the ancient Armenian capital of Ani. Located about 60km outside of Kars, the impressive early medieval ruins of Ani are situated on a steep ridge, overlooking the deep, curvy ravine of the Akhurian River, which also acts as the official border between Armenia and Turkey.
Since there are no public transport between Kars and Ani, one needs to get a taxi from the town centre in order to visit the ruins. A taxi normally costs 90-100TL, the taxi driver would pick you up from your hotel at the arranged time, drive to Ani, wait for you outside the entrance gate for 3-4 hours while you visit the ruins, before returning to Kars.
The city of Ani was the capital of the Armenian Kingdom, which once exercised control over a vast stretch of territory, including much of present-day Armenia and parts of eastern Turkey. During its heyays between the late 10th and early 11th century, Ani became a key stop of several trade routes due to its size and importance. The city boasted a population of some 100,000 - 200,000 people, and rivaled Constantinople, Baghdad and Cairo in terms of importance and splendour of its architectures. The city was known as the 'City of 1001 Churches', thanks to the numerous (for its time) technologically and artistically advanced churches, religious buildings and places of worship within the city's limits.
Following the death in 1020 of Ani's Armenian Bagratuni King, Gagik I, Ani entered into a prolonged period of political instability. In the next few decades, the political ownership of the city changed hand several times, while the massacre in 1064 of the city's inhabitants by the Selcuk Turks following a 25-day siege further accelerated the speed of its decline. After the arrival of the Mongols in 1236, the fortune of Ani took a turn for the worse, as trade had floundered and the city was neglected during the Mongol rule. The trend of Ani gradual but terminal decline reached its conclusion in the early 15th century, when the local Turkish rulers of Ani decided to transfer their capital to Yerevan. The city was incorportated into the Turkish Ottoman Empire in 1579, by the time of which Ani was just a shadow of its former self. Although a small town could still be found in mid-17th century within the confines of the present-day city walls, by the mid-18th century, the whole town had been abandoned altogether as a result of the continuous depopulation of the vast hinterland areas surrounding Ani, leaving behind only the impressive city walls and the ruins of numerous Armenian churches.
The current site of Ani was 're-discovered' in mid-19th century by European travellers and quickly gained fame amongst academic and archaelogical circles. After 1878, the whole Kars region, including Ani, became part of the Russian Empire. Extensive professional excavations of Ani were carried out by Russian archaealogists between 1892 and 1917, during which buildings in danger of immediate collapse were restored and a survey of the entire site was conducted.
The onset of the 20th century, however, spelt more trouble for the city though, as the region of Kars was fought over by the Russians and their Armenian counterparts on the one hand, and the crumbling Ottoman Empire/emerging Turkish nationalists on the other. After several change of hands, finally the dust settled in 1921 with the signing of the Treaty of Kars, in which Ani was formally declared part of the Turkish Republic.
The end of the First World War and the Turkish War of Independence did not bring peace and stability to Ani. In the ensuing years, Ani was classified as military zone due to its proximity to Armenian border. In the 1990s, amid rising tension with Armenia over the Nagarno-Karabakh War, Turkey closed the border to Armenia and subsequently, all access to Ani by non-military personnels were denied. Restoration works of existing architecture and excavation of the site also came to a halt due to deliberate negligence on the part of the Turkish state and lack of funding.
It was not until recently that regulations and restrictions governing the visit to Ani of foreign nationals had eased. In the past, anyone interested in visiting Ani must first apply for a police permit days in advance from the local authorities., and photograhpy was strictly forbidden. Since the beginning of the 21st century, however, visitors are no longer required to apply for police clearance in advance, and photography was allowed everywhere within the site. When I visited Ani in 2009, I simply negotiated a price with a local taxi driver and arrange for a half-day excursion to Ani. Entry ticket to Ani can be bought at the ticket booth located at the front gate. And restoration works have begun once more.
When I visited Ani on an October afternoon, there was a big group of Turkish school children within the compound, touring the site as part of their school excursion in the company of their teachers, It is good to see that after so many years of neglect, Ani is now receiving the attention this ancient monument so much needed and deserved. Such visit by Turkish school children would have been impossible barely 10 years ago.
Being in a region with rampant earthquakes, many of the buildings which somehow still remain after years of neglect are seriously damaged in the quakes, the most recent of which was in the 1980s. Lots of work and efforts are needed if the future generations are to be able to visit this site on their school trips.
The Akhurian River and its deep ravines, which also serve as the formal border between Turkey and Armenia, offered some breath-taking views of the surrounding plateau. At its peak, the city limit of Ani covered a huge expanse of land across both sides of the Akhurian River.
Ani is no doubt amongst one of the most valuable historical heritage sites within the territory of the Turkish republic, and it is imperative that for all that political bickering, politicians should take a serious look on the economic side of the question. If properly restored and provided with decent tourist infrastructre, Ani would no doubt be a mega tourist magnet and lands among the Top 10 Must-See places in Turkey. Given that so many people have already made an effort to visit here despite the lack of infrastructure and public transport, one could imagine the huge crowd this place would draw if only the Turkish government can finally overcome their political obstinacy and give Ani the Ancient City the value and recognition it so much deserves.
Copyrights@2010. All text and photos by YC Cheng. All Rights Reserved.
Since there are no public transport between Kars and Ani, one needs to get a taxi from the town centre in order to visit the ruins. A taxi normally costs 90-100TL, the taxi driver would pick you up from your hotel at the arranged time, drive to Ani, wait for you outside the entrance gate for 3-4 hours while you visit the ruins, before returning to Kars.
Following the death in 1020 of Ani's Armenian Bagratuni King, Gagik I, Ani entered into a prolonged period of political instability. In the next few decades, the political ownership of the city changed hand several times, while the massacre in 1064 of the city's inhabitants by the Selcuk Turks following a 25-day siege further accelerated the speed of its decline. After the arrival of the Mongols in 1236, the fortune of Ani took a turn for the worse, as trade had floundered and the city was neglected during the Mongol rule. The trend of Ani gradual but terminal decline reached its conclusion in the early 15th century, when the local Turkish rulers of Ani decided to transfer their capital to Yerevan. The city was incorportated into the Turkish Ottoman Empire in 1579, by the time of which Ani was just a shadow of its former self. Although a small town could still be found in mid-17th century within the confines of the present-day city walls, by the mid-18th century, the whole town had been abandoned altogether as a result of the continuous depopulation of the vast hinterland areas surrounding Ani, leaving behind only the impressive city walls and the ruins of numerous Armenian churches.
The current site of Ani was 're-discovered' in mid-19th century by European travellers and quickly gained fame amongst academic and archaelogical circles. After 1878, the whole Kars region, including Ani, became part of the Russian Empire. Extensive professional excavations of Ani were carried out by Russian archaealogists between 1892 and 1917, during which buildings in danger of immediate collapse were restored and a survey of the entire site was conducted.
The onset of the 20th century, however, spelt more trouble for the city though, as the region of Kars was fought over by the Russians and their Armenian counterparts on the one hand, and the crumbling Ottoman Empire/emerging Turkish nationalists on the other. After several change of hands, finally the dust settled in 1921 with the signing of the Treaty of Kars, in which Ani was formally declared part of the Turkish Republic.
It was not until recently that regulations and restrictions governing the visit to Ani of foreign nationals had eased. In the past, anyone interested in visiting Ani must first apply for a police permit days in advance from the local authorities., and photograhpy was strictly forbidden. Since the beginning of the 21st century, however, visitors are no longer required to apply for police clearance in advance, and photography was allowed everywhere within the site. When I visited Ani in 2009, I simply negotiated a price with a local taxi driver and arrange for a half-day excursion to Ani. Entry ticket to Ani can be bought at the ticket booth located at the front gate. And restoration works have begun once more.
When I visited Ani on an October afternoon, there was a big group of Turkish school children within the compound, touring the site as part of their school excursion in the company of their teachers, It is good to see that after so many years of neglect, Ani is now receiving the attention this ancient monument so much needed and deserved. Such visit by Turkish school children would have been impossible barely 10 years ago.
Being in a region with rampant earthquakes, many of the buildings which somehow still remain after years of neglect are seriously damaged in the quakes, the most recent of which was in the 1980s. Lots of work and efforts are needed if the future generations are to be able to visit this site on their school trips.
The Akhurian River and its deep ravines, which also serve as the formal border between Turkey and Armenia, offered some breath-taking views of the surrounding plateau. At its peak, the city limit of Ani covered a huge expanse of land across both sides of the Akhurian River.
Ani is no doubt amongst one of the most valuable historical heritage sites within the territory of the Turkish republic, and it is imperative that for all that political bickering, politicians should take a serious look on the economic side of the question. If properly restored and provided with decent tourist infrastructre, Ani would no doubt be a mega tourist magnet and lands among the Top 10 Must-See places in Turkey. Given that so many people have already made an effort to visit here despite the lack of infrastructure and public transport, one could imagine the huge crowd this place would draw if only the Turkish government can finally overcome their political obstinacy and give Ani the Ancient City the value and recognition it so much deserves.
Copyrights@2010. All text and photos by YC Cheng. All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment