Faith over Fear
Just feet away from the Azerbaijani border, one man’s land has turned into a museum of ancient Armenian artifacts.
The front yard of Surik’s home, Karahunj, Armenia
Surik drinks from a tub of water, a khachkar carved into the top. The names of his daughter and her doctor are etched into the stone. After one of his daughters fell into a deep coma, the doctor was able to pull her out of it and heal her. Surik drinks this water that he believes to be healing.
Cross carved stones sit in the grass in the front yard of Surik’s land. They are only a few of the treasures Surik has collected and found over the years.
Surik shows two of the statues he found nearby. A donkey, and a ram. The ram can be seen with a carving of a family on the side. Withered away over time, the mother and father are still seen prominently.
Surik stands in front of one of the caves he’s renovated.
Surik lights a fire in one of his caves to keep warm. He relies on the sticks and branches from the surrounding forest to ignite the fire. The smoke is then let out through a chimney built in the cave and released into the air which can be seen from across the border.
Suriks’s wife, Anoush Harutunyan (front), sits in the back of a car with friends Tarlan and Stacey (back) while en route to a different cave built by Surik that houses canned foods and alcohol.
Anoush poses for a picture while putting the shot glasses out for the handmade alcohol. Some bottles of alcohol have been sitting in this cave for years resulting in a very strong, pungent taste.
A view of the pond from high above where his caves sit. People are frequently seen swimming in the pond.