In 2010, while an archaeology undergraduate student, I participated in an archaeological field school in Vayots Dzor, Armenia at the well-known chalcolithic cave, Areni-1. That experience was my first taste of international travel and I fell in love with both Armenia and archaeology. However, it was not the chalcolithic history of the region that caught my attention, but the medieval churches and fortifications that still speckle the mountainous landscapes of Armenia. It was that trip that made me want to specialize in the medieval Near East and South Caucasus and set in motion the career path that I have since carved out for myself.

I have been fortunate to have worked in the field on a number of projects in the Near East and Mediterranean since that initial trip to Armenia in 2010, but it has always been a dream of mine to return. In 2020, I got in contact with Dr. Tiffany Earley-Spadoni regarding the Vayotz Dzor Fortress Landscape project, and we made plans for me to join the team. Shortly afterwards, the world shut down from Covid – but two years later, in the summer of 2022 we were able to make it happen. In July I flew from Canada to Armenia and returned for a summer of excavation and survey in the same small village that I worked in twelve years previous.

In the evenings, after coffee and sweets, the team had shared lab hours. I was assigned to help organize and record the pottery backlog from previous seasons, recording the details of all the diagnostic pottery finds from the site. Through this process we were able to better understand regional ceramic production, the different vessel and fabric types that frequented the site, as well as the local geology.

I was overjoyed to be able to return to Armenia, and deeply enjoyed my time in Vayotz Dzor working with the VDFLP team. Beyond the interesting archaeological work we conducted in Karaglukh, I enjoyed the many interesting conversations were had over delicious meals and homemade lavash in the village of Areni, strolls through neighbouring apricot orchards, and visits to the local 13th century church.

Aurora Camaño is a PhD Candidate in Archaeology at Simon Fraser University. She is a landscape archaeologist who specializes in built landscapes in the medieval Near East and South Caucasus. Her current dissertation studies landscapes of relocation in medieval Armenian Cilicia. She can be found on Twitter @AuroraCamano.

Read more about Vayots Dzor Fortress Landscapes Project here.

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