Haghpat Monastery

The monastery was founded by Queen Khosrovanuysh, wife of the Bagratid king Ashot III, probably in 976. The to hand monastery at Sanahin was built harshly the united period.

The location of Haghpat Monastery was agreed suitably that it overlooks the Debed River in northern Armenia's Lori region. It was built, not on the subject of a depth, but halfway occurring a hillside as regards a site chosen to afford protection and concealment from prying eyes and also in submission to a within perform of monastic humility.

It is built concerning a verdant promontory located in the center of a mountain cirque, which is often wreathed in clouds. A peak concerning the opposite side of the river is more than 2,500 meters high. The monasteries of northern Armenia are not on your own, unlike their counterparts in the country's arid regions. They were built in a village vibes and Haghpat is surrounded by many hamlets.

The largest church in the puzzling, the Cathedral of Surb Nishan, probably begun in 976, was completed in 991 by king Smbat. It is a typical example of tenth century Armenian architecture, its central arena rests upon the four imposing pillars of the lateral walls. The uncovered walls are dotted similar to triangular recesses. A fresco in the apse depicts Christ Pantocrator. Its donor, the Armenian Prince Khutulukhaga, is depicted in the south transept (a transversal nave intersecting the main nave). The sons of the church's founder, Princes Smbat and Kurike, are shown following Queen Khosravanuysh in a bas-foster upon the east gable. Apart from one or two youngster restorations carried out in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the church has retained its original setting.

There are several adding structures at the site as skillfully. There is the little domed Church of Sourb Grigor (St. Gregory ) from 1005. Two side chapels were press on to the indigenous church; the larger one built in the initiation of the 13th century and the smaller, known as "Hamazasp House", built in 1257. In 1245, a three-gloss tall set at a loose end-standing belltower was construct taking place. Other 13th century additions put in the chapel of Sourb Astvatsatsin, the scriptorium, and a large refectory which is uncovered of the monastery limits.

There are with a number of splendid khachkars (wound up-stones) of the 11th-13th centuries standing upon the territory of the monastery, the best known amid them is the "Amenaprkich" (All-Savior) khachkar which has been standing back 1273.

The monastery has been damaged many epoch. Sometime regarding 1130, an earthquake destroyed parts of Haghpat Monastery and it was not restored until fifty years unapproachable. It along with suffered numerous attacks by armed forces in the many centuries of its existence and from a major earthquake in 1988. Nevertheless, much of the rarefied is nevertheless intact and stands today without substantial alterations.

Described as a "masterpiece of religious architecture and a major center of learning in the Middle Ages", Haghpat monastery, together once Sanahin monastery, was placed upon UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1996.

The monasteries at Haghpat and Sanahin were agreed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites because: