- TURY.CLUB
- Tourist Objects
- Armenia
- Ehegnadzor
- Noravank Monastery
Noravank Monastery is located among bizarre steep red rocks on a ledge of a winding gorge. It was founded in the 12th century on the site of ancient buildings. During the reign of Princes Orbelianov, the monastery became a major religious center, and in the XIV century - the residence of the bishops of Syunik. The oldest church of the monastery is, which has come down to us in ruins, the Surb Karapet church, built in the 9th-10th centuries. To the north of it in 1216-1223 the main temple of the monastery was erected, also bearing the same name. This is a cross-domed building with two-story vestries in four corners. The temple has a strict decorative decoration. On the western side of the church in 1233 a narthex was attached, which was otherwise called Gavit or Zhamatun. From the original building, which has a rectangular shape, only the walls with a height of about 2.5 meters are preserved. In all likelihood, at first the ceiling of the hall rested on columns. In 1261, the dome was rebuilt. However, during the earthquake of 1321, the ceiling was again damaged. When restoring the dome, the derrick was rebuilt (light hole in the center of the ceiling). Then a portal was erected with a window at the top. The tympanum of the window above the door was decorated with unique images of God the Father blessing the crucified Christ, and the semicircular tympanum of the front door was decorated with the image of the Mother of God with the baby and the faces of two saints. Inside the narthex, deep niches with khachkars are arranged. All this gave the interior a strict, severe character. All restoration work was carried out by the famous architect, sculptor and miniaturist - Momik. In 1275, the church of Surb Grigor was attached to the north side of the main temple, which was the tomb of Prince Smbat Orbelian. This is a modest rectangular structure. The walls on both sides of the altar are decorated with cross-stones and images of pigeons. One of the cross-stones created by the architect Momik was transported to Etchmiadzin. A little further away is the church of Surb Astvatsatsin, built in 1339 under Prince Burtel Orbelian (therefore it is called Burtelashen). The building is a highly artistic monument. Its first basement floor served as the tomb of the princely family of Orbelian. A cruciform chapel rises above the tomb. The decorative decoration of the church is more restrained in the lower part of the building and more elegant at the top. The western facade of the building is especially richly decorated. There are two cantilevered stairs that lead to the second tier. The bases of the stairs begin on the left and right of the entrance to the tomb. Above the door of the first floor there is a bas-relief depicting the Mother of God with the baby Christ and the archangels, and above the upper entrance - with the image of Christ and the figures of the apostles Peter and Paul. The monument is characterized by harmonious proportions and exceptionally exquisite decoration. There are many khachkars on the territory of the monastery. Among them is the 1308 khachkar - the work of Momik. Its entire surface is covered with small openwork carvings. On it stand out a large cross over a shield-shaped rosette and, located on the sides, eight-pointed stars. In the upper part of the cross-stone, Christ is depicted framed by a floral ornament. The khachkar, established in honor of the main architect of the monastery, Momika, has been preserved in Noravank. The monastery in the XVII-XVIII centuries was surrounded by a fence with adjacent buildings. The remains of the chapel and one khachkar, reminiscent of a hotel built in the middle of the 13th century, are preserved behind the fence on the east side. The Noravank complex, thanks to the magnificent creations of medieval architects and its location on the background of a beautiful landscape, leaves an indelible impression. It is one of the magnificent architectural monuments of the Armenian Middle Ages.
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