AKHTALA

Location. The monastery is situated on an elevated cape edged with rocky ravines on three sides, in the centre of a castle of the same name, in Akhtala Village of Lori Region, Republic of Armenia (Dzoropor District, Gugark Province, Armenia Maior), at an altitude of 680 metres above sea level ¥N 41°09°01.73´´; E 044°45°49.79´´¤.

A Historical Introduction. Medieval sources mention this monument by the names of Agarak and Peghendzahank (the last one literally translated as ‘Copper Mine’).

Akhtala was remarkable for its naturally impregnable position from at least the Early Middle Ages. The oldest source bearing reference to a church existing here is the inscription (1188) of a cross-stone preserved in a site called Ayor, but presumably, the place had religious buildings in even earlier times. According to this record, the oldest known church of Akhtala, Sourb Astvatzatzin, was built by Princess Mariam, the daughter of King Kyurike II (1145 to 1186), in 1188.

As attested by the monuments preserved in Akhtala, in the first decades of the 13th century, large-scale construction activity was unfolded here, its initiators being the members of the Zakarians’ princely family who had already embraced the Chalcedonian faith. The main church of the monastic complex, Sourb Astvatzatzin, which is a magnificent edifice, was thoroughly reconstructed in the site of an older place of worship by Ivane Zakarian, who was an adherent of this faith (in 1227 his remains were interred in the yard of Akhtala Monastery).

Indeed, the principal church of the complex already existed some years before this major reconstruction: Stepanos Orbelian writes that until 1216 the church of Akhtala kept a Holy Cross, the gift of Prince Prosh’s father Vasak, which Ivane Zakarian later donated to Noravank. It is also known that the decoration of the church walls with frescoes began in 1205: this could have been undertaken only after the completion of the building, which suggests that Sourb Astvatzatzin was erected in the first years of the 13th century.

An Architectural Description. The monastic complex consists of a principal church, an adjoining portico and chapels as well as a second church and annexes, all enclosed within ramparts which have towers.

Sourb Astvatzatzin, which is the main church of the monastery, stands almost in the centre of the castle and represents a domed building with a pair of octahedral pillars. In the east, the semi-circular sanctuary is found with a low bema which has double-floor sacristies on both its sides. The church has three entrances, the principal of which opens from the south, the other two being located in the west and north. The underdome square joins the tambour by means of pendentives. The dome of the church is not preserved: as legend has it, it was destroyed by Timur in the late 13th century, but according to another source, it was ruined during Omar Khan’s invasion of 1784.

In the 19th century, a semi-spherical dome of tin was added to the monument on the order of Caucasian Vice-Roy M. Vorontsov (it had a wooden framework).

In 1937 the roof of the monument was covered with tin; in 1940 to 1941 as well as in 1970, its murals were conserved. Between 1975 and 1978, the upper sections of the walls were repaired and the tin covering of the roof was replaced with basalt slabs.

In 1976 to 1978, the stone roof and dome of the church were restored.

With the exception of its north-western part, the church is inwardly thoroughly adorned with colourful ornamentation and frescoes representing scenes from the Old and New Testaments which are attributed to the period between 1205 and 1216.

The northern chapel, which adjoins Sourb Astvatzatzin in the north, is a small vaulted building of a pent-roof and a rectangular plan, its entrance opening from its western facade.

The western chapel abuts on the southern edge of the western wall of the main church. A small vaulted building with a rectangular sanctuary, it dates back to the 13th century. Its principal entrance opens from its western facade, its northern entrance providing it with communication with the arched portico. Its facades are adorned with an arcature.

The arched portico, which abuts on the western facade of Sourb Astvatzatzin Church, has two arches in the west and one in the north as well as two gable roofs. This portico retains the remains of Ivane Zakarian, who died in 1227, and his son, Avag Zakarian, who died in 1250.

The second church, which dates back to the 13th century, stands in the north-west of the monastery. It represents a small uni-nave vaulted structure with an outwardly accentuated semi-circular sanctuary and low bema.

Ramparts and Annexes. The monastic complex is enclosed within ramparts with towers, adjoined with residential and utility buildings. At present only a double-floor structure is preserved close to the eastern wall. The gate of the monastery opens from the central part of its northern wall, between the large and small towers. The eastern tower of this gate is circular, its dimensions considerably exceeding those of the other towers.

Some episodes of Sergei Parajanov’s Color of Pomegranates were shot in Akhtala Monastery.