Matenadaran Museum

At the end of Mashtots Avenue, on a hill, is the building of Matenadaran – the Institute of Ancient Manuscripts.

In front of the building there is a monument to Mesrop Mashtots, the creator of Armenian writing.

Matenadaran is the largest center of Armenian written culture. About 17,000 manuscripts are stored here, which include numerous fragments of Armenian and foreign-language ancient manuscripts, fragments of parchments of the V-VI centuries, manuscripts of the IX-X and subsequent centuries, fossilized fragments of manuscripts found in caves, copies of the first printed books, etc.

The oldest manuscript that is fully preserved is the Gospel of Weamor (Virgin Mary), written in the VIIth century.

Armenian manuscripts are rich in miniature images. Paints used in miniatures were obtained exclusively from natural dyes, and therefore over time they did not weather and did not lose their original freshness and brightness.

Near Matenadaran there is a large library, which is the most important scientific center for Armenian studies.