As of July 15, not a single statue or bust remains in Stepanakert, the capital of Artsakh. All 25 monuments that once formed the city’s monumental heritage have been completely removed, according to the Artsakh Agency for the Development of Culture and Tourism.
The report, supported by Google Earth satellite imagery and posts on Azerbaijani social networks, states that the following figures’ monuments have been erased:
- World War II heroes: Marshal Hovhannes Baghramyan, Admiral Hovhannes (Ivan) Isakov, and fighter pilot ace Nelson Stepanyan
- Cultural figures: Henrik Barkhudaryan, Hovhannes Tumanyan, Khachatur Abovyan, Vagharsh Papazyan, Charles Aznavour, Hovhannes Aivazovsky, and human rights defender Andrei Sakharov (the fate of the bust of Alexander Griboyedov remains unconfirmed)
- National liberation movement and defenders: Ashot Gulyan (Bekor), Kristapor Ivanyan, Anatoly Zinevich, Yuri Poghosyan
- Bolshevik revolutionaries: Stepan Shahumyan, Aleksandr Myasnikyan, Aleksandr Tsaturyan
The statement adds that while the official fate of the sculptures has not yet been clarified, considering Azerbaijan’s ongoing policy of erasing Armenian cultural heritage, it is highly likely that the statues have been permanently destroyed.
“These monuments were not only of historical and cultural value. Their creators included both renowned Armenian artists and internationally recognized sculptors—such as prominent Russian sculptors Salavat Shcherbakov and Grigory Pototsky, who respectively created the statues of Aivazovsky and Sakharov,” the agency noted.
The first monument dismantled in Stepanakert was that of Stepan Shahumyan, after whom the city had been named for over a century.
On September 19, 2023, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive against Artsakh, subjecting the region to massive shelling. One day later, on September 20, the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh agreed to a ceasefire proposed by the Russian peacekeeping command and accepted Baku’s terms, including the disarmament of the Defense Army and the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh. Forced deportations of Artsakh Armenians began on September 24, with over 100,000 people displaced to Armenia. As of now, reports suggest that only around 20 Armenians remain in Artsakh. On September 28, Artsakh’s President Samvel Shahramanyan signed a decree on the dissolution of the republic, which took effect on January 1, 2024.
