Zorats Karer, Stone row and archaeological site near Sisian, Armenia

Zorats Karer is an archaeological site near Sisian containing 223 basalt stones arranged in rows across an elevated plateau. The stones reach up to 3 meters in height and feature carefully drilled holes that researchers continue to study.

The burial ground dates from the Middle Bronze Age between 2000 and 1600 BCE and continued to be used until around 900 BCE in the Early Iron Age. Over this long span, the site shows how people returned across generations to honor their dead at the same location.

The name Karahunj comes from the Armenian words for "stone" and "sound", referring to the whistling the pierced stones make in the wind. Local lore also calls the site Zorats Karer, "stones of the warriors", saying a commander lies in the stone-box tomb and his soldiers beneath the separate standing stones.

The site covers about 7 hectares on a rocky promontory at 1,770 metres, 3 km north of Sisian, on the left side of the Dar canyon. There are no marked paths or shelter, so wear sturdy shoes for the uneven, stone-strewn ground and bring windproof clothing. The stones stand 0.5 to 3 m high, and the holes sit in their upper parts, so look up rather than down.

About 80 of the 223 numbered stones have a circular hole, 4–5 cm across, bored through the upper part; 37 stones with 47 holes still stand. The holes were drilled conically from both sides, so some run at an angle, and their inner surfaces are better preserved than the weathered outer faces.