HISTORICAL BUILDINGS

7th century BC

The canal originates from the left bank of the Hrazdan River, 1 km downstream from the Kanaker HPP, at the same water intake point where the Dalma Canal also begins. It also passes through the Arabkir administrative district. It irrigates the orchards of the Hrazdan Gorge, then, running along the slopes of the gorge and through a short tunnel, reaches the Kond district, from where one branch enters a 200 m-long tunnel, crosses the Getar River, and flows into Vardavar Lake.

It is assumed that the canal was built by Rusa II of Urartu, as, like other Yerevan canals, it follows the principles of Biainian hydraulic engineering.

In written sources, it is first mentioned in the 13th-century work “Chronological History” by Mkhitar Ayrivanetsi as the “Yerevan Canal”, and later in the 18th century in the work “Jambr” by Catholicos Simeon Yerevantsi.

The canal became known as “Mamur” (Arabic: “rebuilt”) from the first quarter of the 17th century, when it was restored under Persian governor Amirguna Khan. It was also restored after the devastating earthquake of 1679 and in 1822–1824 under the last Persian governor of Yerevan, Hossein Qoli Khan. During this period, it irrigated all of Kond, the gardens of Dzoragyugh and Shahari districts, and supplied water to the Yerevan fortress through a stone aqueduct.

In the 1840s, the Dalma Canal was connected to its main channel, irrigating gardens in the area of present-day Aram and Pushkin streets. In the 1860s, a branch derived from the Dalma extension irrigated the central districts of the city and the gardens of present-day Abovyan Street, eventually flowing into the Getar River.

In the early Soviet period, in 1922–1923, major reconstruction works were carried out on the Mamur Canal. At the end of present-day Tumanyan Street, it was extended to the Abu Hayat Canal, and then flowed into Lake Vardavar. In 1923, the canal was renamed after Stepan Shahumyan. It was intended to supply water to the four turbines of the first Soviet-era hydroelectric power plant in the Hrazdan Gorge. For this purpose, the canal was deepened in places and water-control structures were built. In 1963, after the decommissioning of the derivational canal of the Yerevan HPP, the Mamur Canal was converted into a stormwater collector for the central part of the city.

The canal is approximately 15 km long, with a discharge capacity of 0.6 m³/s.