The Yerevan History Museum stands as the oldest museum in Armenia, offering a fascinating chronicle of the capital’s evolution through the ages. Housing an impressive collection of around 80,000 artifacts, the museum presents an engaging narrative that spans from the city’s ancient roots to its vibrant present. Visitors can journey through time by exploring domestic items from antiquity, medieval relics, early travelers’ sketches, and a variety of intriguing objects. Towering panoramic murals vividly transport guests into the Yerevan of bygone eras, immersing them in the city’s rich past.
Founded in 1931, the museum was originally known as the Municipal Museum and received its current name only five years later. Its initial home was a modest single-room space inside the city’s fire department headquarters. For nearly six decades thereafter, the museum found residence within the halls of the Blue Mosque. In the 1990s, it relocated to the former Ripsimean Girls’ School and the Shaumyan School No. 1 before finally settling into its current location in 2005.
Today, the museum occupies one of Yerevan’s architectural gems — a majestic structure designed by the distinguished architect Jim Torosyan. This striking building is not only a testament to modern Armenian design but also a fitting sanctuary for a museum dedicated to preserving the city’s spirit and legacy.
The museum’s holdings include an array of archaeological, ethnographic, numismatic, and other cultural treasures. These were generously donated by Yerevan’s residents and supplemented by contributions from state collections. The museum’s intellectual backbone lies in its Scientific Council, comprised of Armenia’s foremost art historians, cultural scholars, and visionaries who have played a pivotal role in shaping its direction.
The museum’s vast collection is meticulously divided across three thematic departments, each offering a unique glimpse into Yerevan’s material and spiritual culture through the ages.
Among its most ancient artifacts are tools over 100,000 years old unearthed in the Yerevan Cave, alongside sacred hearths, figurines, jewelry, and millstones from the prehistoric settlement of Shengavit, dating back to the 3rd–4th millennia BCE. Also featured are bronze belts, ritual knives, beer vessels, and stone idols from the archaeological site of Karmir Blur, as well as objects from the Hellenistic period discovered in Awan-Arinj.
The museum’s medieval collection is equally compelling, featuring iron-clad doors, church bells, tapestries, and relics from some of Yerevan’s earliest Christian churches — Surb Poghos-Petros, Surb Sarkis, Surb Hovhannes, Astvatsatsin, and Katoghike Surb, to name a few.
A standout highlight is the golden pocket watch once belonging to Tsar Nicholas I, gifted to the noble Melik-Aghamalyan family. Visitors will also find historic printing presses, letter-melting machines, rare stamp collections, early telephones, and the city’s first clock tower mechanisms. In a dedicated gallery, panoramic models of Old Yerevan—painstakingly reconstructed from archival photos, drawings, and blueprints—offer an extraordinary window into the city’s visual history.
Practical Information
Address: 1 Argishti Street, Yerevan
Website: [English site available]
How to Get There: Take the metro to Zoravar Andranik station. Upon exiting, follow the signs through English Park and turn left.
Opening Hours:
Monday to Saturday: 11:00 AM – 5:30 PM
Closed on Sundays
