During wars, cultural heritage is particularly vulnerable to deliberate attacks and acts of intolerance, as starkly demonstrated during the 44-day war initiated by Azerbaijan in 2020, the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, and the complete depopulation of Artsakh due to military operations in 2023. In armed conflicts, the use of monuments and their surrounding cultural landscapes for military purposes – such as shelters, ammunition depots, combat bases, observation posts, command centers, or deployment hubs for armed forces –poses a significant threat to heritage protection. During and after the 2020 war, numerous churches, community cultural centers, and educational institutions in Artsakh were repurposed by Azerbaijan for military use. This repurposing undermined the primary cultural, spiritual, historical, educational, and aesthetic functions of these heritage sites. By altering their roles to serve military purposes – effectively turning them into “military objects” – their spiritual and cultural significance is disrupted. Moreover, this transformation violates the protections afforded by the Hague and Geneva Conventions, as well as international humanitarian law, which safeguard cultural heritage as a civilian asset. Converting heritage sites for military purposes compromises their inviolability, making them more susceptible to damage or destruction. Despite the norms of international humanitarian law, incidents of damage and destruction to Artsakh's monuments due to their military use by Azerbaijan have not ceased. On the contrary, they continue to escalate, further endangering the cultural heritage of the region and, by extension, the world.

KeywordsInternational humanitarian law protection of cultural heritage armed conflict Artsakh Azerbaijan military use of cultural values war crime

Mural painting is one of the most significant forms of monumental art, characterized by its organic and conceptual relationship with the architectural environment and its capacity to shape the artistic integrity of space. Executed through techniques such as fresco, tempera, glue-based paint, encaustic painting, and oil, mural painting is inherently intended for long-term existence and functions as a bearer of historical and cultural memory. The origins of this art form date back to prehistoric rock paintings and later developed extensively within ancient Near Eastern and Greco-Roman civilizations, where it acquired religious, ideological, and symbolic meanings. This article is devoted to the study of murals created in public spaces by Hovhannes Minassian. Although the majority of these works have not survived over time, they occupy an important place in the history of Armenian monumental painting, reflecting the artistic thinking and spatial-decorative explorations of the 1960s. The research is based on preserved photographs, archival materials, and contemporary testimonies, aiming to reconstruct the artistic and historical-cultural significance of the lost murals. This approach makes it possible to reassess Minassian’s contribution and to emphasize the crucial role of monumental art created in public environments in shaping the cultural life of the period.

KeywordsHovhannes Minassian mural painting fresco fine arts monumentalism heritage painting