"Azerbaijani people are the successors of the creators of South Caucasus' ancient civilization"

New archeological monuments have been discovered in Azerbaijan lately due to funds allocated from the President’s Reserve Fund. What are urgent issues related to archeology in Azerbaijan at present?

Archaeological monuments dating back to various period have been studied during over the past two years which have provided a lot of new information on the ancient period. We study several of these archaeological sites in Azerbaijan. One of them is already well-known Goytapa settlement in Tovuz region. Excavations at the Neolithic settlements in Goytapa in Tovuz, Hasansu - in Agstafa, Kamiltepe - in Agjabadi, Polutapa - in Jalilabad regions dating from VI millennium B.C. and the settlements neolythic period dating back to V and IV centuries BC yielded a wealth of information on this period of humanity. The monuments of these periods cover problems of first globalization of human civilization, which has been linked to ancient Middle Eastern cultures.

Can you list the major monuments which scraped previously existing scientific understanding?

I can say that Azerbaijani people are the successors of the creators of the ancient civilization of the South Caucasus 7 - 6 th B.C. Archaeologists in many European countries especially pay great attention to the study of the monuments of first civilizations. This includes periods of middle and late Bronze Age, Early Iron Age, the ancient period, early and advanced ages. For two years, very interesting excavations are being carried out in Goranboy and Goygol regions. Excavation in aeneolithic and early Bronze Age settlements, burial mounds and burial ground revealed a lot of interesting archaeological materials, which require more careful work in these areas.

An interesting research is being conducted in archaeological site which is palatial building 1 thousand BC in Garajamirli village of Shamkir region. Excavations are conducted in the medieval town of Shamkir. Excavations in Agsu region began recently. The capital of Shirvan, which existed in the 18 th century is being studied. Some of our most interesting archaeological sites are investigated by foreign archaeologists.

Many foreign archaeologists work in the South Caucasus and many international expeditions are organized here. Why foreigners are involved in the excavations?

After the collapse of the USSR, international archaeological expedition appeared first in Georgia and later in Armenia. In recent years, such expeditions have been organized in Azerbaijan as well.. The first foreigners were French archaeologists representing the CNRS (National Centre for Scientific Research in France). They work with us in Tovuz and in Nakhchivan. Oglangala dating back to 1 thousand B.C. is being studied together with our archaeologists.

Excavations are carried out in monuments, reflecting development of metallurgy in the Caucasus. German experts are working in Shamkir and Agjabadi regions. A group of professional archaeologists, from Tokyo University of Japan study of settlements in Tovuz region. Archaeologists from South Korea have been working in Gabala since last year. We are negotiating with archaeologists from Australia, England and Turkey. The advantage of joint expeditions is not only the exchange of experience, but also a number of other professional benefits. The main thing is that thanks to their participation, we can easily and quickly bring our discoveries to the world.

If we want our monuments to be known outside of Azerbaijan, we must try to do it in line with world standards. Otherwise, we wont be taken seriously.

What can you say about strategic archaeological programs and the level of domestic experts? Do financial resources allocated by the state for excavations satisfy them?

Archaeological works are conducted on basis of certain types of programs around the world. Of course, we are also preparing a strategic program. In 1980s, Azerbaijan had a lot of professional archaeologists. Many believe that archaeology is an easy thing: "You took a shovel and dig up.” But this is not true. Everyone can dig with a shovel. Archaeological excavations is a science, if you wish.. Each type has its own monument has its own method of excavation.

Secondly, correct interpretation of the materials found is also important. This, first of all, requires good knowledge of ancient history. Our archeology history knows the names of Azerbaijani archaeologists who created and passed a good academic school. But, unfortunately, today there are very few of them. Judging from statistics of scientific thesis in this area, we must have enough good archaeologists. I note that we also have a new generation of archaeologists, some of whom work better than their professional predecessors.

As to financing, I can say the following. I often visit different countries and I know how things are abroad. So, I can say that financing of archaeological research in Azerbaijan meets international standards. In Transcaucasian region, Azerbaijan is the only country to allocate sufficient funds for archaeological research.

Does the Ministry of Culture and Tourism have information on studies of our archaeologists?

The Ministry is in charge of all our archaeological research. It helps the archaeological research undertaken by the ANAS Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography. It provides protection, preservation and reconstruction of archaeological sites, without which our work would lose meaning. All excavations require protection.


/Vesti.az/