At the invitation by Ivan Knez, the Mayor of the Croatian seaside resort of Biograd na Moru, Ambassador Ashot Hovakimian participated in the opening ceremony of the statue of Armenian architect, businessman, philanthropist Vahan Melik Karaganyan

20 September, 2024

On September 20-21, at the invitation by Ivan Knez, the Mayor of the Croatian seaside resort of Biograd na Moru, Ambassador Ashot Hovakimian participated in the opening ceremony of the statue of Armenian architect, businessman, philanthropist Vahan Melik Karaganyan (1889-1977).

According to the available information, Vahan Melik Karaganyan appeared in Yugoslavia in the 1920s, founding a construction company that carried out the construction of the hospital in Biograd na Moru. Karaganyan decided to stay in the town and to deal with its reconstruction, dreaming of turning it into a "Yugoslav Nice". For this purpose, he initiated many programs aimed at the development of tourism, builds the most prestigious "Ilirija" hotel in the city, implements complete electrification of the surroundings, etc.

After the Second World War, in 1945, the Yugoslav communist authorities arrested Karaganyan and confiscated all his property, sentencing him to 10 years in prison and forced labour. After being released from the camp, he moved to Belgrade, where he died in 1977.

However, the memory of Vahan Melik Karaganyan was so vividly preserved in the city, that the installation of his statue on September 21, on the Independence Day of the Republic of Armenia, became a holiday for all residents of Biograd na Moru.

The Croatian Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Šime Erlić, the Ambassador of Armenia to Croatia Ashot Hovakimian, the Mayor of Biograd na Moru Ivan Knez and the City Council President Ivana Stamičar participated in the opening ceremony of the monument and made opening speeches. The Croatian pianist Eva Kirchmayer-Bilić and soprano Antonia Žarković performed the national anthems of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Croatia, dozen of the music and dance ensembles participated in the program.

On the eve of the ceremony, the ceramics exhibition of Alina Gishyan, a talented Armenian artist living in Croatia, and the President of the Armenian-Croatian Society, was opened in the City Museum of Biograd na Moru.

The Ambassador Hovakimian also visited the neighboring historic town of Nin, whose ancient, pre-Romanesque (IX century) Church of the Holy Cross, according to many scholars, is influenced by Armenian medieval architecture.

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