History of ArzniThe healthy sources of Arzni have been known to the population since ancent times and were used in primitive ways. Bishop Mesrop Smbatian points that the water of Arzni was known as "Kosakhbyur" (a source against scabies). There is a stone with a cross on it near the source. The centuries-long people’s experience of using Arzni water brought it enormous fame and attracted attention of the medical community. The first written mentions of the Arzni mineral sources are related to the beginning of the 15th century. More accurate evidence about the water of Arzni appeared many years later, when Armenia was annexed to Russia. General Paskevich, then the Russian Army commander in the Erivan region, was the first who drew attention to the waters of Arzni. By his order water samples was sent to Tifliss for chemical analysis. Some time later, in 1861, the mineral water of Arzni was investigated by famous chemist Professor G. Strouve who classified it as sodium-sulphate-hydrochloric water. Though being acquainted with the materials about the composition of Arzni mineral water, the tsarist government undertook nothing to place at human’s service the natural resources of this Armenian region. At the time of the Soviet rule, groups of physicians, chemists and geologists were sent to Arzni to discover the mineral sources of the region and conduct a detailed study of their distinct characteristics. To study the therapeutic properties of the Arzni mineral water, the first bathing building was built in 1925 and a medical observation of patients was organized. The patients lodged in a small wooden house (a school edifice in Arzni settlement) where from they were transported down to the canyon by carriages to take a bath. In the middle of 1925, construction of a bath building and one of the blocks of the first sanatorium was launched with concurrent activities aimed at creation of any conditions necessary for rest and treatment. Eventually, the first Armenian balneological resort emerged, surrounded by rocks, literally out of nowhere. After construction of the first sanatorium was completed, the resort improvement works were started and the area to be forested was widened.
Later, a new bath building with hydropathical establishment, physiotherapeutic department and clinical sanatorium was built. After a careful study of the mineral sources, it was decided to establish a balneological resort on their base. In 1933, Arzni was recognized as a national importance resort. Prominent representatives of balneology praised highly the mineral riches of the Arzni region. In its entirety, the area of the resort encompasses sanatorium blocks, balneological, administrative and production offices, as well as the sanitary zone surrounding the springs and engineering infrastructure of the ARZNI mineral waters. The abundance of light, lush and bright grass and flower flavor are supplemented by wonderful views. Altogether, the nature and the spa regimen create necessary conditions for patients' treatment and rest. Owing to the wonderful combination of medicinal mineral springs and climatic conditions of the region, Arzni offers one of the best resorts for the treatment of patients with cardiovascular diseases, neuroses, diseases of gastrointestinal tract and motion organs. |
