Erebuni fortress was built in 782 BC by one of the greatest kings of Urartu, Argishti the First (786-765 / 764 BC).
Regular excavations in Erebuni fortress began in 1950, led by K. Hovhannisyan.
Erebuni museum, which is concerned with the history of the establishment of Yerevan, was founded on May 24, 1968 according to Resolution 225 passed by the Government of the Republic of Armenia in the place of the fortress. The museum opened on October 19, 1968 in honour of the 2750th anniversary of Yerevan city. On March 7, 2003, according to Resolution 313, passed by the Government of Armenia, Erebuni was transformed into a Historical & Archaeological Culture-Preserve. The museum building imitates the construction of an Urartian palace and preserves the principle of the people’s houses with external soundproof walls and a smooth roof around the internal yard.
The museum’s collection of the Erebuni Historical and Archaeological Culture-Preserve includes 11295 archeological objects relating to pre Urartian, Urartian, Achaemenian, Hellenistic and early Armenian periods. The objects have been discovered during periodic excavations.