Armenia's holy land has granted to humanity one of the best and healthy fruits in the world, the apricot.

Armenia is the motherland of the Apricot, is the oldest and genuine center for growing apricot. This is proved by 3000 year old apricot cores discovered during excavations at Garni temple, 25 km far from Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. It is also testified by wide varieties of apricot trees growing in Armenia.

The apricot was imported into Europe by Lucullus, a Roman general after the 1st century B.C. Because of its origin the fruit was known as "prunus Armeniaca" which means "Armenian plum". The Armenian sources are not the only ones to provide information about apricot: in cuneiform inscriptions by Sargon the 2nd of Asorestan (24th century B.C.), we find that he had taken with him plum, apple, mulberry and apricot. In the 2nd and 3rd millenniums B.C. apricot was known to many old nations in the world as "armanu".

Apricot is also remarkable among Armenians because it is from an apricot tree that one of the most beloved and most famous of Armenian national musical instruments, the world acclaimed duduk (in Armenian "tsiranapogh" apricot pipe), is made.

There is an interesting fact about apricot: the apricot is similar to the shape of an egg, and the egg, as is well known, is the symbol of all existence. The apricot has a unique skin, which preserves the life giving energy, vitamins etc. as well as fabulous taste and smell of apricot for a long time. Armenian apricot is different. No apricot in the world tastes and smells as good as the Armenian apricot. No surprise, that many tourists and especially Diaspora Armenians visit Armenia during "apricot season". Following a tradition coming from the depth of centuries, people enjoy this blessed fruit, which protects them from all kinds of diseases. It is told that apricot is one of the exceptional fruits in the world, as it contains gold.
The apricot has a very positive influence on human brain and other organs. It brings people to the condition of golden cut. The "golden cut" is the divine harmony of everything: the positive and negative emotions, feelings, thoughts, abilities, materials and energy. From ancient times apricot is known as "medicine for heart diseases". It prevents heart attacks; it heals heart diseases as well as many other diseases. Apricot prevents malicious cancer, it improves the immune system, and it activates people and moderates the function of the neural system. The apricot core is also very tasty and useful to health. In Armenia one can often see how children break the core and eat the essence of it. There are numerous opinions and ancient texts according to which, those who periodically eat enough apricot grown on Armenian land: live a long, healthy, and happy life.

Apricot truly is a blessed fruit.