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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
IGS, INSTITUTE OF GEOLOGICAL SCIENCES, ARMENIAN NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
INQUA - SACCOM COMMISSION ON STRATIGRAPHY AND CHRONOLOGY
INQUA - ASQUA ASIAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY
INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY
WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
Bridging Europe and Asia: Quaternary stratigraphy and Paleolithic human occupation
in Armenia and South Georgia
Dear colleagues,
First of all, we would like to thank you for accepting our invitation to join the INQUA – SEQS
workshop Bridging Europe and Asia: Quaternary stratigraphy and Paleolithic human
occupation in Armenia and South Georgia that is planned to held 3-10 September in
Armenia. We hope it will both fulfil your scientific expectations and be a moment of pleasure
for us all in a fruitful and stimulating atmosphere. Since the workshop will be hosted by
Institute of Geological Sciences of Armenian National Academy of Sciences, this will be an
opportunity to get familiar with Quaternary geology, Paleolithic Archaeology, and last but
not the least, to enjoy Armenian hospitality. As far as the conference is concerned, please
note that each presentation should not exceed 20 min and 5 min for questions. English will
be the official language of the workshop.
If you have not sent your abstract yet, please be sure to send it before Aug 10th 2016 at the
latest.
Following our preliminary conference program that was sent earlier, we would like to give
some practical information concerning the organization of the SEQS-INQUA-2016 meeting in
Yerevan.
Early bird registration fee (14 April - 15 Aug 2016):
220,000.00 AMD (Equivalent of 400 Euro)
Late registration fee: (16 Aug - Through on-site):
244,500.00 AMD (Equivalent of 450 Euro)
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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
Registration fee covers:
Transportation and field excursions;
Accommodation in field, double rooms in Alaverdi or Neghots (hotels in Yerevan are not
covered)
Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Coffee break and lunch during the conference days in Yerevan
After submission of registration form and payment you will receive electronic invoice and
official invitation to participate in the workshop.
Abstract submission deadline: 10 August 2016
Please send abstracts to [email protected]
Visa policy of Armenia:
Citizens of all European Union countries, USA and former USSR countries do not need Visas
to enter Armenia.
More information is available on the web site of Ministry of foreign affairs of Armenia,
also here.
Check for updates at http://www.geology.am/en/conference.html
Flights To/From Yerevan
Currently, modern and passenger friendly newly build terminal of Zvartnots International
Airport in Yerevan is connected to the world by regular flights to Athens, Beirut, Doha,
Dubai, Kiev, Moscow, Paris, St. Petersburg, Vienna, Warsaw, etc.
Airport pickup
We have arranged with a taxi driver to meet you at the airport. He can also take you to the
airport at the end of your journey, if you wish. This person will be waiting for you with your
name written on a board. The cost of airport transfer is included in the registration fee, so
you do not need to pay extra for this.
Please, provide us with exact date/time of your arrival/departure for us to arrange the airport
pick up and hotel.
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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
Hotel Information
Organizing committee will reserve rooms in the following hotels with a 10% discount
compared to regular hotel prices.
1. Hotel Villa Aygedzor Yerevan
(in 10 minutes walking distance from the Institute)
Hotel web site: http://villaayghedzor.com/lodging_ayghedzor_en.asp
Price 22,500 drams per single room (~40 Euros)
2. Hotel Olympia
(35 minutes’ walk, but minibus will be provided to take you to the Institute)
Hotel web site: http://www.olympia.am
Price 22,500 drams per single room (~40 Euros)
3. Best Western Congress Hotel Yerevan
AMD 43000 per single room (~80 Euros)
(40 minutes’ walk, but minibus will be provided to take you to the Institute)
Hotel web site: http://www.congresshotelyerevan.com/bestwestern/
Please let us know ASAP your hotel preference. In order to reserve rooms beforehand.
September is peak season in Armenia and rooms in affordable but good hotels are of high
demand.
You may also reserve hotel yourself but in this case we will not be able to provide transport
to the Institute from hotel. However, taxies in Yerevan are very convenient, affordable (1.5-2
Euros within center), and easy to get.
If you have any problems in Yerevan, you may phone your Armenian colleagues any time Dr.
Khachatur Meliksetian Deputy Director of IGS) +374 91503175 or Dr. Dmitri Arakelyan
(INQUA-SEQS Meeting Manager, researcher at IGS) + 374 93224112
Contact us for any questions and inquiries: [email protected]
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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
PROGRAM
3rd of September, – Arrival in Yerevan, accommodation in a hotel
4th
of
September,
Yerevan-Alaverdi-Kobayr-
Sanahin-Haghpat-
Neghots
(accommodation in hotels in Alaverdi an at the base camp of IGS near Neghots)
(Responsible person: Dr. Kh. Meliksetian, IGS)
1. Aragats stratovolcano. Short stop at the foothills of Quaternary Aragats volcano.
Aragats (4090m) is one the largest volcanoes in the entire region of post collisional
volcanism. It has produced big number of central vent (inc. Plinian VEI>4) and
monogenetic type flank eruptions. The youngest activity of Aragats is dated to ~500
Ka.
2.
Visits to historical sites in Lori region of Armenia, around Alaverdi. Cathedrals and
monasteries planned to visit are located on the plateaus along the valley with a
picturesque landscape formed by the Debed river, that cross cuts major Early
Pleistocene Plateau basalts and provides nice overview of the regional geology of the
area.
a. Kobair. 12th-century monastery located in the village Kober within Lori marz,
Armenia. The ruins of the main church in the monastery contain frescoes of
Christ and the twelve apostles, as well as the Church Fathers and other
Christian figures.
b. Sanahin. Armenian monastery of 10th century, UNESCO World Heritage Site,
is famous by unique architectural forms and a number of Khachkars (crossstones).
c. Haghpat is a medieval (X century) Armenian monastery complex in Haghpat,
Armenia, another UNESCO World Heritage Site.
3. Plateau basalts in canyon of Debed river. Late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene plateau
basalts outcrops in valley of Debed river (near Alaverdi). 200–400m thick basalt lavas
outcrop in the South Caucasus region, including the Kars–Erzurum Plateau
(northeastern Turkey), the Javakheti Plateau (Georgia–Armenia), and the Lori Plateau
(northern Armenia). These fissure-fed, rapidly erupted fluid lavas filled pre-existing
river valleys over tens of kilometers. Because its main geological features are
remarkably like those of many continental flood basalt (CFB) provinces, we consider it
a true, albeit small, CFB province, regardless of the tectonic setting (continental
collision). It is the smallest and youngest CFB in the world (Sheth et al., 2015). Many
regional Paleolithic sites are found on the top of plateau basalts, Karakach, Dmanisi,
Kurtan, Bagratashen-1.
5th of September, Alaverdia (Neghots) – Haghtanak-3 – Dmanisi (Georgia) -Neghots
(Responsible persons: B.Gasparyan, IAE NAS, Armenia, Prof. D. Lordkipanidze, Georgian
National Museum)
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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
1. Haghtanak-3. Hagtanak-3 is a multiperiod open-air archaeological site, which
contains Iron-Age cemetery, Chalcolithic settlement and Paleolithic habitation phases
from Upper to Lower. The most significant ones are the finds of the pebble tools in
the lowermost strata, which may signify hominid presence in the Debed river valley
during the early Pleistocene. (Egeland et al. 2011)
2. Dmanisi. Dmanisi in South Georgia is an early hominine site, fossils are dating back
at 1.8 million years and are now believed to be a subspecies of Homo erectus.
(Lordkipanidze et al. 2013)
6th September, Neghots – Odzun-Kurtan-Karakhach-Neghots
(Responsible person: Dr. Trifonov, GIN RAS, Russian Federation)
1. Odzun. Armenian basilica constructed around the 5th-7th century in the Odzun
village of the Lori Province of Armenia. The church represents well preserved domed
basilica.
2. Kurtan. Multiperiod archeological site, Uratian fortress (8 century BC). Paleolithic part
of the site contains the Middle Acheulian artifacts. (Presnyakov et al., 2012, Trifonov et
al., 2015)
3. Karakhach. Early Paleolithic site. The course-grained pyroclastic unit of Karakhach
was deposited during the Olduvai subchron (not earlier than 1.9-1.85 Ma) and the
earliest Calabrian. The region was occupied by the earliest hominines producing lithic
industries of the Early Acheulian aspect. (Presnyakov et al., 2012, Trifonov et al., 2015)
7th September, Neghots – Sevkar-Sevan-Nor Geghi-1 – Yerevan (accommodation in a
hotel)
(Responsible persons: Dr. A. Karakhanyan, Dr. L. Sahakyan, IGS NAS Armenia, B. Gasparyan,
IAE NAS, Armenia)
1. Sevkar. Well dated stratigraphic succession of unaltered loess deposits, palaeosols,
colluvial slope deposits, and volcanic ashes. The chronology of formation of loesspaleosol sequences with volcanic ash corresponds to Late-Pleistocene-Holocene.
(Wolf et al., 2016)
2. Sevan Lake and Sevanavank monastery. Sevan Lake is the largest lake in Armenia
and the entire Caucasus region. It is one of the largest freshwater high-altitude lakes
in the world. Altitude of the lake is 1900 m. The geology of the lake and its
surroundings represent an interesting combination of Quaternary and Holocene
tectonics and volcanism. Sevanavank is a 9th century monastery complex located on a
peninsula at the northwestern shore of Lake Sevan.
3. Nor Geghi-1. Paleolithic site that marks the Lower to Middle Paleolithic transition
(~400,000 to 200,000 years BC). The site contains dated sections of lava flows,
volcanic ash and paleosols with tools. (Adler et al., 2014)
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INQUA – SEQS SECTION ON EUROPEAN QUATERNARY STRATIGRAPHY WORKSHOP 03 – 10 SEPTEMBER 2016, ARMENIA
8-9th of September. Presentations and discussions
Program to be compiled
10th September – Departure
Looking forward to seeing you in Yerevan soon.
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