The Romanian-Armenian community’s Ararat Magazine has issued a special supplement devoted to the restoration of the mausoleum of the Palyans at the Armenian cemetery in the Skyutar district of Istanbul. The Palyans were notable Armenian architects in the Ottoman Empire.

The restoration of the mausoleum is the initiative of and is sponsored by Romanian-Armenians Hrach/Anoush and Hakob Krmzyan. Their parents, Shnorhik and Vahram Krmzyan, were born in Constantinople and settled in Romania during the years of the deportations. Hrach and Hakob were born in Ployest. In 1952, they traveled to Istanbul, lived and studied there for a while and moved to Paris. According to the brothers, “they would have been different, if they had immediately moved from Bucharest to Paris”, but Constantinople had a deep impact on them. They studied there and became familiar with the life of the Palyans, real friendship and spiritual values. Since then, the businessmen have been visiting Istanbul often.  Hrach is currently retired. During his years of study, he discovered and was amazed by the Palyans’ splendid structures that the Turks would usually present as the works of the Palianis of Italy. When he visited their family resort near the cemetery in Skyutar in 2013, he noticed the dilapidated mausoleum of the Palyans located at a short distance and decided to restore it with his brother. Paying heed to the advice of the priest of the Holy Cross Church in Skyutar, they contacted Istanbul-Armenian architect Kevork Ozkaragyoz. Under the latter’s coordination, the Association of Armenian Architects of Istanbul formed a group of architects (Davit Aynali, Nazar Binatli) who were also joined by Director of the Museum-Institute of Architecture of Armenia Ashot Grigoryan. In 2014, they drafted and formulated the necessary documents, and Mayor of Istanbul Kadir Topbas expressed willingness to help them. Restoration of the mausoleum began in 2014 and ended in October 2016.

“Hakob and I had a feeling of satisfaction after we finished restoring and opening the mausoleum because we wanted to be remembered as the protectors of the human and moral values of the Armenians. The Palyan family is living evidence of the fact that minority nations and peoples have made great contributions to the advancement of certain countries and prove that we Armenians have deep roots in Turkey, and nobody can say that we came out of nowhere.”

According to him, a decade ago, a Turkish journalist wrote that if the Turks removed the Palyans’ structures and buildings from Istanbul, the city would be stripped. The Krmzyans find that after the restoration of the mausoleum, it will be the duty of the future generations to respect and eternalize the brilliance and memory of their creations.