Vintage Decorative Plate of Ani, Ani Armenia Capital, Armenian Wall Hanging Plate Antique vintage Melchior plate made from Armenia in the 1970s or even early in the 1960s. The plate evokes the ancient Armenian capital of Ani with the word Ani, the lion and the eternity sign in overall condition okay with sign of wear. Ani the cosmopolitan capital of medieval Armenia, one of the earliest kingdoms to adopt Christianity as its state religion in the early A.D. 300s. The site of a fifth-century fortification, Ani was chosen to be Armenia’s capital in the 10th century. It became home to as many as 100,000 people, and was so richly endowed with sacred buildings that it came to be known as the “city of 1,001 churches.” Its strategic position along trade routes between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea made it an attractive possession, condemning it to centuries of invasion—and eventually, a long period of abandonment. Diameter 13.5cm – 5.31in Weight 137gr