November 27, 2007 - 18:42 AMT
Designers of Memorial to Armenian Genocide victims awarded gold medals
During From Memory to Memorialization international scientific conference dedicated to 40th anniversary of the Memorial to the Armenian Genocide victims, Director of the Museum-Institute of Armenian Genocide Hayk Demoyan handed gold medals to co-authors of the project - architect Sashur Kalashian and Artur Tarkhanyan (posthumously), former Director of the Museum-Institute, academician Lavrenty Barseghyan and guide Astghik Yedigaryan, who has worked in the Museum for 12 years.

When addressing the attendees architect Kalashian said that nationwide love for the Memorial is explained by its emotionality and sincerity. "The problem was to find the money essential for the construction of a monument with a "forbidden subject," he said adding that the project cost 600 thousand soviet rubles.

"We could not imagine that great number of people will come to our monument every year to commemorate the Armenian Genocide victims," he said, Novosti Armenia reports.