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Ani (Template:Lang-hy, Latin: Abnicum ) is a ruined and uninhabited medieval city-site situated in the Turkish province of Kars, beside the border with Armenia. It was once the capital of a medieval Armenian kingdom that covered much of present day Armenia and eastern Turkey. The city is located on triangular site, visually dramatic and naturally defensive, protected on its eastern side by the ravine of the Akhurian River (Template:Lang-tr) and on its western side by the Bostanlar or Tzaghkotzadzor valley. The Akhurian is a branch of the Aras River and forms part of the current border between Turkey and Armenia. Called the "City of 1001 Churches", it stood on various trade routes and its many religious buildings, palaces, and fortifications were amongst the most technically and artistically advanced structures in the world.

At the height of its glory, Ani had a population of 100,000 - 200,000 people and was the rival of Constantinople, Baghdad and Cairo. Long ago renowned for its splendor and magnificence, Ani has been abandoned and largely forgotten for centuries.

History

Armenian chroniclers first mention Ani in the 5th century AD. They describe it as a strong fortress built on a hilltop and a possession of the Armenian Kamsarakan dynasty.

By the early 9th century the former territories of the Kamsarakans in Arsharunik and Shirak (including Ani) had been incorporated into the territories of the Armenian Bagratuni dynasty. Their leader, Ashot Msaker (Ashot the Meateater) (806-827) was given the title of ishkhan (prince) of Armenia by the Caliphate in 804. The Bagratids had their first capital at Bagaran, some 40km south of Ani, before moving it to Shirakavan, some 25km northeast of Ani, and then transferring it to Kars in the year 929. In 961 king Ashot III (953-977) transferred the capital from Kars to Ani. Ani expanded rapidly during the reign of King Smbat II (977-989). In 992 the Armenian Catholicosate moved its seat to Ani. By the start of the 11th century the population of Ani was well over 100 000, and its renown was such that it was known as "the city of a thousand and one churches". Ani did not lie along any previously important trade routes, but because of its size, power, and wealth it became an important trading hub.

Ani attained the peak of its power during the long reign of King Gagik I (989-1020). After his death his two sons quarrelled over the succession. The eldest son, Hovhannes (John) Smbat (1020-1041), gained control of Ani and his younger brother, Ashot (1020-1040), controlled other parts of the Bagratid kingdom. Hovhannes Smbat, fearing that the Byzantine Empire would attack his now weakened kingdom, made the Byzantine Emperor Basil his heir. In January 1022, the Catholicos Peter, handed over to Basil II who was wintering with his army in Trebizond a document from Hovhannes Smbat pledging his kingdom to the emperor in the event of his death. When Hovhannes Smbat died in 1041, the successor to Basil, Emperor Michael IV claimed sovereignty over Ani. The new king of Ani, Gagik II (1042-1045), opposed this and several Byzantine armies sent to capture Ani were repulsed. However, in 1045, after the capture of Ashot and at the instigation of pro-Byzantine elements amongst its population, Ani surrendered to Byzantine control. A Greek governor was installed in the city.

In 1064 a large Seljuk Turkish army, headed by Sultan Alp Arslan, attacked Ani and after a siege of 25 days they captured the city. In 1072 the Seljuks sold Ani to the Shaddadids, a Muslim Kurdish dynasty that had originated in Ganja. The Shaddadids generally pursued a conciliatory policy towards the city’s overwhelmingly Armenian and Christian population, and actually married several members of the Bagratid nobility. Whenever the Shaddadid governance became too intolerant, the population would appeal to the Christian kingdom of Georgia for help. The Georgians captured Ani in 1124,1161 and 1174, each time eventually returning it to the Shaddadids.

In the year 1199 (some sources say 1200) the forces of the Georgian queen Tamara captured Ani. The governorship of the city was given to Zakare and Ivane Mkhargrdzeli, two generals in her army. At Ani, this new dynasty is generally known as the Zakarids, after its founder Zakare, and they considered themselves to be the successors to the Bagratids. Prosperity quickly returned to Ani: its defences were strengthened and many new churches were constructed. Zakare was succeeded by his son Shahanshah.

The Mongols unsuccessfully besieged Ani in 1226, but in 1236 they captured and sacked the city, massacring large numbers of its population. Ani had fallen when Shahanshah was absent. On his return the Zakarids continued to rule Ani, only now as vassals of the Mongols rather than the Georgians. Ani started its gradual but terminal decline during the Mongol period. By the 14th century the city was ruled by a succession of local Turkish dynasties, including the Jalayrids and the Kara Koyunlu (Black Sheep clan) who made Ani their capital. Tamerlane captured Ani in the 1380s. On his death the Kara Koyunlu regained control but transferred their capital to Yerevan. In 1441 the Armenian Catholicosate did the same. The Persian Safavids then ruled Ani until it became part of the Turkish Ottoman Empire in 1579. A small town remained within its walls at least until the middle 17th century, but the site was entirely abandoned by the middle of the 18th century. The depopulation of Ani was paralleled by the depopulation of its rural hinterland as a result of the yearly migrations of nomadic Kurdish tribes who would rob and murder the settled population at will.

Ani is a beautiful, young goddess. She is amazing and very talented. In no way is Jewels better than her. Though out her life she has been the bestest at eveything. This is why Ani is hot. :D Take that haters!

Modern times

In the first half of the 19th century, European travellers discovered Ani for the outside world, publishing their descriptions in academic journals and travel accounts.

In 1878 the Kars region, including Ani, was incorporated into the territory of the Russian Empire. In 1892 the first archaeological excavations were conducted at Ani, sponsored by the St. Petersburg Academy of Scientists and supervised by the Russian archaeologist and orientalist Nikolai Marr (1864-1934). Marr's excavations at Ani resumed in 1904 and continued yearly until 1917. Large sectors of the city were professionally excavated, numerous buildings were uncovered and measured, the finds were studied and published in academic journals, guidebooks for the monuments and the museum were written, and the whole site was surveyed for the first time. Emergency repairs were also undertaken on those buildings that were most at risk of collapse. A museum was established to house the tens of thousands of items found during the excavations. This museum was housed in two buildings: the Minuchihr mosque, and a purpose-built stone building.

In 1918, during the latter stages of the First World War, the armies of the Ottoman Empire were fighting their way across the territory of the newly declared Republic of Armenia, capturing Kars in April 1918. At Ani, attempts were made to evacuate the artefacts contained in the museum as Turkish soldiers were approaching the site. About 6000 of the most portable items were removed by archaeologist Ashkharbek Kalantar, a participant of Marr's excavation campaigns; the saved items are currently in Yerevan's State Museum of Armenian History. Everything that was left behind was later looted or destroyed. Turkey's surrender at the end of World War 1 led to the restoration of Ani to Armenian control, but a resumed offensive against the Armenian Republic in 1920 resulted in Turkey's recapture of Ani. In 1921 the signing of the Treaty of Kars formalised the incorporation of the territory containing Ani into the Republic of Turkey.

In May 1921 the Turkish National Assembly issued a command to the commander of the Eastern Front, Kazım Karabekir, ordering that the "monuments of Ani be wiped off the face of the earth". Karabekir records in his memoirs that he replied dismissively to this command, but the wiping-out of all traces of Marr's excavations and building repairs suggests that the command was partially carried out.

According to The Economist:

Even as a ruin, Ani has been a disputed city. In 1921 when most of the site was ceded to Turkey, the Armenians were dismayed. They have since accused the Turks of neglecting the place in a spirit of chauvinism. The Turks retort that Ani's remains have been shaken by blasts from a quarry on the Armenian side of the border.

Another commentator describes:

Ani is now a ghost city, uninhabited for over three centuries and marooned inside a Turkish military zone on Turkey's border with modern Armenia. Ani's recent history has been one of continuous and always increasing destruction. Neglect, earthquakes, cultural cleansing, vandalism, quarrying, amateurish restorations and excavations - all these and more have taken a heavy toll on Ani's monuments.

In the estimation of the Landmarks Foundation (a non-profit organization established for the protection of sacred sites) this ancient city:

needs to be protected regardless of whose jurisdiction it falls under. Earthquakes in 1319, 1832, and 1988, Army Target practice and general neglect all have had devastating effects on the architecture of the city. The city of Ani is a sacred place which needs ongoing protection.

As a tourist site, Ani has been less than unwelcoming until recently. A traveler gives the following account from a few years ago:

Due to the proximity of the border, just as in Soviet days, visitors to Ani must first obtain permission from the tourist office in Kars. The lengthy procedure which is mentioned in many guidebooks has been shortcut and there is no need anymore to pay a visit to the police and the museum in Kars. Permit and entrance ticket are now issued at the Kars tourist office. The employees request the plate number of your car or taxi and try to sell you a packaged tour that they organize. This being the good news. The bad news is that, due to tensions with Armenia, photography is again strictly forbidden. When we arrived at Ani, all cameras had to remain in the car. During the visit, after a friendly body search, we were constantly escorted by border guards to ensure that no one went too close to the border.

Around 2004 these restrictions were relaxed and photography is now allowed.

Now, according to an author of Lonely Planet and Frommer's travel guides to Turkey:

Official permission to visit Ani is no longer needed. Just go to Ani and buy a ticket. If you don't have your own car, haggle with a taxi or minibus driver in Kars for the round-trip to Ani, perhaps sharing the cost with other travelers. If you have trouble, the Tourist Office may help. Plan to spend at least a half-day at Ani. It's not a bad idea to bring a picnic lunch and a water bottle.

Turkey's authorities now say they will do their best to conserve and develop the site and the culture ministry has listed Ani among the sites it is keenest to conserve. In the words of Mehmet Ufuk Erden, the local governor:

By restoring Ani, we'll make a contribution to humanity...We will start with one church and one mosque, and over time we will include every single monument.

A spokesperson for Global Heritage Fund (a Californian conservation group that helps to manage endangered historic sites) remarked that "Piecemeal restoration is no substitute for a master plan for Ani as a whole".

Monuments at Ani

However, now in modern times, Ani is a stank whore that has fake over blonde hair. She carries a Prada purse that she knows she wants to give to me. It is SO NOT her color. I mean really. I like monkeys and french fries but she is just slank. I mean she swears she is cute. Just look at the way she walks--thinking she has a bootay when she knows even Tiffany has a bigger one than her. She needs to get a life and do her journalism class work... and STOP EDITING THIS DAMN SITE!! lol... Do your work!

See also

• List of Kings of Ani

Notes

1. ^ Hooper, Horace Everett (1910–1911). "ANI (anc. Abnicum)". Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition. Vol. 2. Cambridge University Press. pp. p.47. Retrieved 2007-01-21. {{cite encyclopedia}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
2. ^ Sim, Steven. "VirtualANI - Dedicated to the Deserted Medieval Armenian City of Ani". VirtualANI. Retrieved 2007-01-22.
3. ^ "Ani, a disputed city haunted by history". The Economist. Jun 15th 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
4. ^ Anatolia Travel Information
5. ^ "SACRED SITE". Ani, Turkey. Landmarks Foundation. Retrieved 2007-01-22.
6. Hovannisian, Richard G. (1997). The Armenian people from ancient to modern times: from antiquity to the fourteenth century. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 136. ISBN 0-312-10168-6.
7. Whittow, Mark (1996). The Making of Byzantium, 600–1025. Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 383. ISBN 0-520-20497-2.
8. Kalantar, Ashkharbek, The Mediaeval Inscriptions of Vanstan, Armenia, Civilisations du Proche-Orient: Series 2 - Philologie - CDPOP 2, Vol. 2, Recherches et Publications, Neuchâtel, Paris, 1999;ISBN 2-940032-11-4
9. Marr, Nicolas (2001). Ani - Rêve d'Arménie. Anagramme Editions. ISBN 2-914571-00-3.
10. Kalantar, Ashkharbek (1994). Armenia from the Stone Age to the Middle Ages. Recherches et Publications. ISBN 2-940032-01-7.
11. Marr, Nikoli Yakovevich: "Ani, La Ville Arménniene en Ruines", "Revue des Études Arméniennes", vol. 1 (original series), 1921.
12. Dadrian, Vahe (1986). The role of Turkish physicians in the World War I genocide of Ottoman Armenians. p. 192.
13. Karabekir, Kazım (1960). Istiklal Harbimiz. pp. 960–970.
14. Sim, Steven. "The City of Ani: Recent History". VirtualANI. Retrieved 2007-01-26.
15. Sim, Steven. "The Permit for Visiting Ani". VirtualANI. Retrieved 2007-01-22.
16. Brosnahan, Tom. "Ancient Armenian City of Ani". Turkey Travel Planner. Retrieved 2007-01-22.

References

• Cowe, S. Peter (2001). S. Peter Cowe (ed.) (ed.). ANI World Architectural Herritage of a Medieval Armenian Capital. {{cite book}}: |editor= has generic name (help)
• Kevorkian, Raymond (2001). Raymond Kevorkian (ed.) (ed.). Ani - Capitale de l'Arménie en l'An Mil. {{cite book}}: |editor= has generic name (help)
• Lynch, H.F.B. (1901). Armenia, Travels and Studies.
• Marr, Nicolas Yacovlevich (2001). Ani - Rêve d'Arménie.
• Minorsky, V. (1953). Studies in Caucasian History.
• Paolo, Cuneo (1984). Documents of Armenian Architecture, volume 12: Ani.
• Kalantar, Ashkharbek (1994). Armenia from the Stone Age to the Middle Ages.
• Sinclair, Thomas Allen (1987). Eastern Turkey, an Architectural and Archeological Survey, volume 1.

External links

• Virtual Ani - has clickable maps, extensive history and photos

40°30′27″N 43°34′22″E / 40.50750°N 43.57278°E / 40.50750; 43.57278

• History of Armenia
• Archaeological sites in Turkey
• Ghost towns in Asia
• Ruins
• Historical capitals of Armenia
• Byzantine Empire