The Artsakh State Historical Museum of Local Lore in Stepanakert was founded in 1939. The museum aims to preserve the archeological and cultural history of the Artsakh people. It boasts 50,000 historical-cultural artifacts, presenting the origins and development of the territory and its inhabitants. Recent archaeological excavation conducted in the region has provided further opportunity for the museum to enrich its collection. Upon entering the museum the exhibition halls start off with models demonstrating Artsakh's natural landscape. Further down is the hall of archeology where models of petrification, early implements of the Stone Age, different bronze subjects, preservations from times of the state of Urartu, amazing ornamented ceramic vessels, Armenian, Roman, Persian, Arabian silver and copper coins, and so on. When entering the hall of the Middle Ages, the section starts off with a photo and map of the first churches in Artsakh : Amaras monastery, founded by Gregory the illuminator, the first Armenian Christian philosopher. There is also a documentary available at this part of the exhibit where evidence of his propagations in South Caucasus are presented. In the department of ethnography, the gallery begins with the show-case of the Artsakhian family life. Here, there are images and a diorama of a grandmother knitting with distaff while the grandfather sews leather footwear. There is also an old carpet weaving loom and samples of Artsakh weaving art- carpets of 18-20 cc. In 19c. the center of the Armenian national culture was Shoushi city; of it the old gospel, printed books and photos tell. The halls of modern history are rich in documentary artefacts where exhibits depicting the national liberation fight of Artsakhian Armenians against Azerbaijan in 1918–21 are shown. Here the map of Armenia of 1926 is presented, fulfilled on the basis of the union treaty of the 10th of August, 1920, as well as documents confirming the tragic events in Shoushi on the 23d of March, 1920, and describing about the forced annexation of Nagorno-Karabakh to the Soviet Azerbaijan. The last halls of the museum detail modern-life in Artsakh and the national-liberation war, and discuss themes of broader Armenian solidarity. There is a small gift shop in the museum, where one can buy booklets, books and photo albums dedicated to Artsakhakh. The museum is open every day except Sundays.
