Today, the Humanitarian Literature reading-hall of the Pedagogical University hosted the presentation of the book “Climbing the Ararat” by Ashot Ajamoghlyan, the Head of the
Department of Social-Economic Geography and Geography Teaching Methods; the event welcomed the University Chancellor Rouben Mirzakhanyan, guests from the YSU, lecturers and students.
The Director of the University Scientific Library, the editor of the book Tigran Petrosyants made the welcome speech.
The latter emphasized the book publication considering it both a scientific and a popular work; “The foreigners greatly admired the Ararat and sometimes called it “the rock of all rocks” or “the mountain of all mountains”. The reader of this book will witness the whole process of up-rises and the overcome obstacles throughout a year.”
Afterwards, the author of the book Ashot Ajamoghlyan received congratulations from the lecturers of the Faculty of Geography and Geology of the YSU Aram Avagyan, Gurgen Hovhannisyan, geologist Karapet Vardanyan, as well as his colleagues Michael Manoukyan, Boris Mnatsakanyan, Ashot Galstyan, the MA student Shoghik Sahakyan, and the Dean of the Faculty of History and Law.
The latter, with his sharp historian’s eye, presented the work “Climbing the Ararat” mentioning that, in all cases, it is rather difficult to speak about Mountain Ararat; it has got some special stable and impassable meaning for the Armenian nation.
In addition, speaking about the creation of the book, the author also referred to the event of climbing the Ararat organized
by the UNESCO, when some of the delegates from thirty-five countries, including the Armenian representatives, were refused the permit to climb the Ararat by the Turkish government.
“From that day on, my soul has been waving disquieted. But finally, in 2012 I travelled to the historic Armenia. While climbing up the hills of Ararat, I got practically assured that Ararat is in fact “the mountain of all mountains”,” the author of the book mentions with admiration and puts in, “No matter whether it is a nature lover or traveler, a tourist or a hiker- whoever visits the beautiful Armenia for the first time, becomes strongly interested and impressed with the sky-scraping legendary Mountain Ararat, the significant research era of which was the 19th century.”
Besides, special section in the book is dedicated to the great illuminator Khachatur Abovyan who climbed the Ararat with F. Parrot in 1829, and with H. Seymour in 1845.
Moreover, a brief introduction is also made about the geological and physical-geographical description of the Ararat, also the observations of scientists who climbed up the mountain in connection with the earthquake of 20 June 1840.
Last but not least, we would also like to mention that the presentation was accompanied with the exhibition headed “Western Armenia on Photos” made by the employee of the Department of Social-Economic Geography of the Pedagogical University, cartographer Tigran Babayan.
