Wall Memorials: Armenian Street Murals Honor Fallen Soldiers

A portrait of a soldier named Rob on a building in the northern Armenian city of Gyumri. 

This image is one of scores of outdoor murals that have appeared across the country honoring soldiers who died in battle during the 2020 Azerbaijani offensive to retake Armenian-controlled regions in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. 

A mural under a highway bridge in southern Yerevan in memory of Edgar, 18.

A local told RFE/RL that the imagery is "an absolutely new tradition" to honor Armenians killed in battle. 

 

A painted memorial to Shahen in central Yerevan.

During and shortly after the 2020 conflict, black banners were hung across streets where the fallen soldiers lived. These painted murals are a longer-term tribute. 

 

A mural in southern Yerevan accompanied with a large vase of flowers honoring a young soldier named Hayk. 

 

A mural in Gyumri honoring a fallen soldier that proclaims "I died so that you may live." 

Arman Matevosyan, one of the artists behind the Gyumri murals, told a local journalist that the images of young men around his own age are "extremely difficult to paint" but he says the emotionally taxing work is made easier by the knowledge that the art is "a consolation for parents." 

 

Murals in central Gyumri to fallen soldiers, including to a tank operator who is declared an "immortal hero." 

A mural in Yerevan with the combined flags of Armenia (left) and the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh with script proclaiming "The Armenian spirit is unbreakable." 

This image is based on a famous photo made early in the 2020 conflict of a young artilleryman called Albert Hovhannisian who was killed shortly after his photos were widely shared across social media. 

A portrait of fallen soldier Benjamin Yeghoian in central Yerevan with the words: "His weapon was the tank, your weapon is knowledge."