Kanaker‘s most important son has been immortalised in his very own museum. Built in the socialist modernist style in the 1960s, the Abovyan Museum is constructed on stone stilts on top of the author’s original birthplace and childhood home.

The juxtaposition of the towering soviet-era museum on top of the well-preserved original 19th century cottage is quite striking. It reminds me of a similar (yet grander) museum to Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in Gori, Georgia.

I’ve always been a big fan of Abovyan, so the museum was of special interest to me, but there are some surprising facts for everyone to enjoy. Abovyan studied in the Estonian college-town of Tartu where he was instructed in the ideas of Kant and Hegel by Prussian professors. The museum contains many artifacts from his studies, travels and other possessions, which allowed me to gain a unique perspective on this influential man, his motivations, his environment…

The museum keeps a collection of his personal items, letters, drafts and much more. An impressive statue greets visitors at the entrance of the museum grounds. This statue’s homologue stands at the traffic circle at the end of his eponymous street (Abovyan Street) as well.

The Abovyan museum can be a nice place to start a tour of the Kanaker village and provides a lot of historical and tourist information when needed.