National Library of Armenia. The Museum of Printing

In 2012 Yerevan was declared World Book Capital by Unesco on the occasion of the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the printing of the first book in Armenian. During these events, it was agreed to establish the Museum of Printing in the Armenian National Library which possesses the largest collection of Armenian printing. On September 25, 2017, the Museum of Printing, which consists of six exhibition halls, opened in the Armenian National Library. Among the items on display are the first Armenian printed book Urbatagirq “The Friday Book” (1512, Venice), the first Armenian printed Bible (1666, Amsterdam), the first Armenian printed map (1695, Amsterdam), the first printed Armenian periodical “Azdarar” (1794 - 1796, Madras). Visitors can also discover the first woodcut Armenian alphabets in European publications, displays of antiquarian books, the history of Armenian printing, printing presses, clichés, etc. Computer displays of objects offer an interactive environment for informal education – a particular attraction for high school and university students. The Museum of Printing is developing as a research center in the field of bookbinding. As a result of the partnership with the National Library of Armenia and Google Cultural Institute the first online collection of the Printing Museum of Armenia has been available on Google Arts & Culture since June 2021. The exceptional exhibition intends to bring the attention of the world to the history and path of Armenian printing, which dates back 500 years, as well as to emphasize the significance of printing heritage by displaying the first printed works in Armenian. The Printing Museum of the National Library of Armenia is also available at izi.TRAVEL. izi.TRAVEL aims to help cultural heritage and tourism organizations to convey their stories in the simplest, most modern way to interested audiences.