The foundation of both the Armenian manuscript and the archival collections of Mashtots Matenadaran rests upon the former collection of the Mother See.
The most valuable collection within the Archive Department is the Catholicosal Chancery (Divan), which holds over 42,000 documents and historically and culturally significant records in Armenian and other languages, including patriarchal encyclicals (kondaks), imperial edicts, foreign-language documents, and related materials. The Armenian-language collection spans chronologically from 976 to 1975. Among the rare foreign-language documents are imperial edicts of Catherine II, Paul I, Alexander III, and Nicholas II, as well as Napoleon I, together with ancient Persian firmans and Arabic-script writings.
The Archive Department houses numerous personal funds. In total, it preserves over 500,000 archival documents, constituting an invaluable source for the study of the historical, economic, political, military, social, religious, and cultural life of the Armenian people and other nations. The department also holds autograph manuscripts — including articles, scholarly works, correspondence, and personal documents — as well as photographs of Armenian and European Armenologists, Armenian spiritual leaders, and prominent figures in culture and science. Among the most significant collections are the archival funds of Nerses Ashtaraketsi, the Lazarian family, and Al. Yeritsyan, Garegin Hovsepyan, Hakob Manandyan, Arshak Alpoyajyan, and others.
The Matenadaran archive continues to be enriched with documents of considerable archival value. Individual donors have played an instrumental role in this process, through whose efforts diverse archival collections are gathered from various locations and donated to Matenadaran. Among the acquisitions of recent years are the funds of Hamazasp and Victor Hambardzumyan, Sirarpie Der Nersessian, Varag Araqelyan, Khachik Samvelyan, Noubar Davityan, Levon Mkrtchyan, and Kostan Zarian, as well as the personal collections of Avo Hovhannisyan and Rouben Galichian, the manuscripts of Yeghishe Charents, the administrative registers of the Armenian Diocese of Adana, and other materials. The archival repository, located in the Matenadaran’s scholarly building, is equipped with systems for monitoring permissible minimum and maximum levels of temperature, humidity, and light, as well as fire suppression systems, measures to prevent the loss or theft of archival documents, and round-the-clock video surveillance
Head of the department: Armen Malkhasyan
Ph.D. in History
Phone: +374 10 513020, extension: 1-48