SYUNIK PROVINCE / GORIS / ARMENIA

Middle Bronze Age to Iron Age – 223 standing stones have been identified – the stones basalt stones and the weight ranges up to 10 tons!

«Karahunj» or «Zorats Karer» is an ancient megalithic complex located in the Syunik region of Armenia, not far from the city of Sisian. This is a huge megalithic complex, consisting of more than 200 vertically standing stones, reaching a height of up to 3 meters and weighing more than 50 tons. Most of the stones have through holes, the diameter of which is 5-7 centimeters. «Zorats Karer» is translated from Armenian as «stones of warriors», «mighty stones», and the name «Karahunj

Numerous excavations have been carried out on the territory of the complex. As a result, artifacts were found that testify to several cultural layers. In total, about 175 items were found here, including ceramics, a necklace, weapons, and luxury items.

And increasingly, parallels are being drawn between Karahunj and Stonehenge. The world famous English monument, according to some versions, was erected somewhere between 3000 and 2000 BC. Until the late 19th century, accepted theories associated Stonehenge with Saxon and Danish cultures. However, Karahunj was installed much earlier.

Walking up towards the stones, just looked like some random rocks thrown around the place!
3hrs 30mins from Yerevan down south
Map shows the lapout of the stones
From further back they do stand out in the flat grassed countryside
When you get closer towards the stones you can see that they have been laid out in a certain way
The name “”Karahung”means Speaking Stones in armenian
Straight away reminded me of the stones in the UK – specifically UK as i havent seen any stones like this anywhere else
Our quide brought along some images of the stones to show us how they looked before
There were so many beautiful neutral colours around the area
Around 80 of the stones have these holes in them and they could have been used for astronomical observations – 17 of the stones associated with sunrise or sunset and 14 with Lunar
The lines of some of the stones actually were from ancient city walls possibly from the Hellenistic period
The sheep!!! I loved driving in the country side and seeing the farmers and their sheep on the roads
Donkey – better than a bus or taxi i guess!
The scenery was just beautiful!
Our group on the bus singing and dancing as Armos do!
We had some wine tasting along the way
Beautiful greenery of the landscapes

Loved this trip and seeing the stonehenge or Armenia, makes me think that they are somehow linked… how can something so similar be somewhere so far away! there has got to be some sort of connection there. Also the hole in the stones is obvously connected to something bogger than them just being there for show, I would love to be a fly on the wall back then when they were bulding these!

I highly recommend to go and see this beautiful site