Khachkars
An Armenian crucifix, also known as a kachkar, is used to symbolize religious beliefs. Crucifixes were incredibly important in historic Armenia, as they were an unwaivering symbol of faith and an omnipresence of hope in their lives. Crucifix necklaces were often given to girls during coming of age events and rites of passage, such as engagement, marriage, and baptism of children. Crucifix necklaces were most commonly passed down from mother to daughter.
Armenian crosses are traditionally adorned with gold etchings. Cross necklaces symbolise strength, faith, endurance, and the owner's relationship to God and their beliefs. The Armenian gold cross is thought to be widely important because it serves as a symbol of the formation of Armenia, as well as the basis of the faith around which many Armenian families centered themselves, historically and today.
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For Sara Anderson, the Armenian cross takes on a life-encompassing meaning. When Sara was a child, she knew only vaguely about the atrocities her great-grandmother Natalie faced in Armenia surviving the genocide. Despite lacking specificities, Sara was aware from childhood of the unimaginable test of life and faith which her great-grandmother endured. Throughout her childhood on holidays, Sara and her family visited great-grandmother Natalie, who further instilled in her the importance of being Armenian, and particularly, owning an Armenian cross.
As she recalls during her interview: "The priest came and gave us from the church store fake gold crosses, and when great grandma passed, we got real gold Armenian crosses. and that they, they were Armenian crosses. These crosses were important to show your faith. At that point I was 13 and i'd had first communion and gotten a simple gold cross, and in the Catholic church I'd gotten a crucifix. My grandma was like, 'no, this is the Armenian cross which they've tried to erase and destroy in so many places."
Sara, through her relationship with her great-grandmother, was eventually inspired to become a pastor, cementing the importance of religion as a symbol of hope and freedom from erasure in her life and family history. She fondly remembers announcing her life's mission to her great-grandmother Natalie from a young age: Natalie swearing she'd eventually change her mind, especially when she got older and saw more of the world. Natalie passed away in 1992, when Sara was a teenager. Today, Sara is a pastor and prominent member of her community. She credits her faith and life's work to her great-grandmother Natalie, a lifelong survivor who expertly embued her existence with the pride of being Armenian.
Ruth Hartunian-Alumbaugh, much like Sara, was vaguely aware of the harrowing journey her grandmother Novart faced in surviving the genocide, fleeing from Armenia to Beiruit. Novart served as an important symbol of perserverance in Ruth's family, and a source of mystery in her own life: passing away when Ruth was a young girl.
Ruth remembers her grandfather's disappointment and heartbreak at the funeral: "I don't believe it was a very comfortable thing when she died. I learned that my father was holding his father's arm because my grandfather just wanted to run into the grave so that he could be with her, because that was the woman that he loved. And that was, that was his life. That was what he had left from Beirut. And that was, that was pretty heartbreaking, heart-wrenching."
Ruth's comments reflect one of the most heartbreaking aspects of genocide: loss of life, even after the fact, can serve as loss of memory or family history if there are aspects of oral history left unsaid. Like many descendants of survivors of genocide, Ruth was only able to enjoy a short period of time with her grandmother before she passed away, and knowledge of her previous life was limited.
However, when Ruth came of age, she was given Novart's collection of artifacts from Armenia, taken when her grandparents fled the genocide in 1915. Among the collection of items was a crucifix, believed to be from c. 1880 - 1900, which had belonged to her grandmother in young adulthood. Ruth covets this: not only does it symbolize her faith, it brings her closer to its original owner, her dear grandmother, who passed away before the two women were able to get to know each other. Through what we know about crosses and their symbolism in historic Armenia, one can almost see young Novart being gifted this crucifix by her family and wearing it proudly, in times of peace and safety for her family.