Armenia. Geghard is the Armenian Petra. Geghard monastery Temple in armenia carved into the rock

Geghard (Geghard), aka Ayrivank (cave monastery) is a monastery carved into the rock. And, unlike Petra, it was cut not in soft Jordanian sandstone, but in very specific Caucasian rocks. It was Geghard who made the strongest impression on me among all the sights I saw.

It is located about 40 km east of Yerevan and 7 km from the village of Garni, at an altitude of about 1700 m above sea level in the gorge where the Goght river flows. It is believed that the Ayrivank monastery was founded on this place at the beginning of the 4th century - natural caves made it possible to very conveniently equip the life of the monastery. However, in 923 the monastery was completely destroyed and burned by the Arabs. The current buildings were built in the XII-XIII centuries in their place. But age also deserves respect. The monastery and the gorge are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. I support with both hands.

The name Geghard means "spear". Spear monastery. According to legend, it was here that Longinus's spear was hidden from the Arabs and other Turks, brought to Armenia by the Apostle Thaddeus (one of the four is the one that is now kept in Echmiadzin).

Unfortunately, there was no way to climb high in order to shoot the big picture, so I will place one someone else's photo with a top view. Notice the two turrets sticking out of the rocks - in the next shots you can look at them from below.

When approaching the monastery on a steep cliff opposite, a white cross is striking. Small, do you think?

In fact, it is a good kilometer and a couple of hundred meters up.

On the northern side of the gorge there is a huge natural arch in the rocks.

And this is a view of the main church of the monastery from the parking lot, which, in my opinion, is no less impressive than Petra's.

Having already climbed to the level of the monastery, you can look to the west - this is the only way here. Not very wide and not very straight.

We enter the courtyard of the monastery. The monastery is a kind of combined one - it has three main churches, two of which are carved into the rocks, and one is attached to them. This is a view of the attached Katoghike church (built in 1215) and the vestibule to it. The excursion usually begins with it.

The heavy carved doors of the church are a characteristic feature of Armenian churches.

A cross-shaped hall made of natural stone, classic for an Armenian church - no frescoes or plaster. I took some of the pictures without a flash on purpose to convey the atmosphere.

In the semi-darkness, the icon looks especially majestic.

Through the passage in the wall, we first pass into a small and completely dark room, illuminated only by candles - this room housed the tomb of the Proshyan clan (in today's language, they sponsored the creation of the monastery).

These are the artifacts laid there along the walls.

We enter the first rocky church Avazan (water church) - a spring beats right in the hall of this church. In fact, it was built in 1240 on the site of an old cave with a spring. The dome is also carved into the rock. And at the top of this round window - remember the turrets in the second photo? is one of these turrets.

Unfortunately, there were very few candles here, so I had to turn on the flash, and the corner with the spring, in complete darkness, could not be removed.

The hall has windows to the "second floor" - this is another level of the monastery. There is the third rocky church of the monastery - Astvatsatsin (Mother of God).

Entrance to the second level of the monastery.

Looking back.

And this is a typical cell in a rock with a strangler window above the door.

On the opposite side of the Katoghike church, a chapel and more cells have been carved into the rock.

Katoghike church from the side of the river.

The Gokht River flows along the bottom of the gorge. The channel is strewn with fallen spring streams and stones washed away from the edges of the gorge. In some places, under the stones, water is simply not visible.

In some places the stones form a small waterfall. Although local businessmen clearly worked here - the dam is clearly made by hand (there are tents of a local cafe nearby and the view from the tables to the waterfall, I think, contributes to a pleasant pastime).

On the opposite bank of the river there is a cave that has not yet been developed.

Well, the khachkars. Some of them are carved right into the rocks.

This is the Geghard monastery. I am afraid, however, that the photos do not convey sensations to the fullest, you still need to see it with your eyes.

Geghard Monastery is usually visited immediately after the Garni Temple on the same day. This is a reasonable logistics because they are 10 kilometers from each other. And not far from Yerevan. So even if you have little time for the sights of Armenia, you will definitely be in time in Geghard and Garni, and they are usually on the list of the first places to see in Armenia.

I have been to many monasteries in Armenia, where all tourists usually go, and did not read anything about them before the trip, except for dry historical facts from Wikipedia. From my inner feelings, whether I understood this place or not. So Garni, like Sanahin monastery, is mine. And mine means you wander around and suddenly you stop in one place and sit on the fifth point, like a dog. Like Castaneda, literally. And you grow.

Geghard Monastery is called a monastery carved into the rock. And this is partly true. But not all. The cathedral, which we see as soon as we get inside, was built, and the premises inside, the narthex and monks' cells were cut down for decades and centuries.

Geghard is beauty and wonder, despite the trade from the parking lot to the entrance.

The exact date of the foundation of the monastery is not known, but the fact that the monastery was built around a source that just flows inside the vestibule and for which many Armenians come, speaks of the pre-Christian foundation of this holy place.

Geghard Monastery survived many wars and plunders, it was patronized by the great Armenian dynasties, but almost nothing has survived since then. Almost. In addition to the stone, which the Armenian craftsmen knew how and are able to process with jewelry. So, at the entrance to the monastery we were greeted by ancient khachkars, carved in stone. With all the desire to carry them away and drop them, it was impossible to break.

Geghard Monastery gained fame and became a place of pilgrimage, as a sacred relic was kept here - the Holy spear, which pierced Jesus. Now the spear is in the vault of the Armenian Vatican - in Echmiadzin. Like the golden letters of the Armenian alphabet.

In the Geghard complex, monastic cells, a chapel and, behold, the Katohike Cathedral Church are now available for inspection.

In the Geghard monastery, right inside the Avazan (Basin) church, more precisely in the narthex, there is a spring that is considered holy and healing. And it is better known than the source of Otsi Port. People come here with empty bottles, take water with them, wash their children.

From the narthex you can get to the parts of the monastery, which are literally carved into the rock. Moreover, they were hollowed out from top to bottom.

Tomb of the Proshyans. Under the coat of arms of the Proshian family, in the form of two lions chained with an iron ring, which is held by the teeth of a bull and an eagle with a sheep in its claws, lie the remains of the family.

Coat of arms of the Proshyans. The ruler Ivan Zakoryan received the Geghard monastery as a token of gratitude for the liberation of the country. And then he sold Geghardavank to a prince from the Proshyan family, who expanded the monastery and built rock-cut churches. Thus, it is a family monastery and a tomb and mausoleum of the Proshyan family.

The Proshyan Church can be accessed through the tomb. I was personally captivated by the light in Geghard. These are the rays that make their way through a single hole in the wall or ceiling. Just like a ray of light straight from there, from heaven.

But light is pouring through the ceiling. But from the side, of course, it looks more impressive.

Another dome in Geghard monastery. In the tomb.

In addition to the fact that most of the Geghard monastery was carved out of stone, there are also so many stone carvings inside that it becomes very sorry for the lack of light to see everything.

As I already wrote, Armenians put candles in churches and monasteries in one place. God will hear for health or peace and to which saint the person prayed.

During an earthquake in the 17th century, Geghard was significantly destroyed, but after restoration it became the summer residence of the Catholicos of All Armenians.

Above the main cathedral, if you climb the stairs in the rocks, you can get to the monks' cells, which are completely carved in stone. And there are about a hundred similar monasteries for monks, although some of them were also destroyed after the earthquake.

Near the cells there are khachkars carved into the rock dating from the 11-13th centuries. On many of these khachkars, inscriptions recorded the names of wealthy donors and patrons of the church.

Red khachkar, vordan karmir, obtained from worms. Yes, from a certain kind of worms. The durability of the paint that was obtained from them can be estimated by how it was preserved after 800 years. In many countries where this dye was exported, it was valued above gold. It is terrible to imagine how many worms were tortured and killed by these holy people.

In addition to the cells themselves, the monks cut down for themselves an altar and a place to sleep in them and everything that is in the cell.

Swallows live and build nests in all Armenian churches. Moreover, no one drives them away, even if they settled over the icon and the icon from such a neighborhood is all contaminated with droppings. Swallows are grace.

The upper vestibule in Geghard Monastery is also carved out of stone. The vault is supported by four columns which were also hand-carved into the rock! It took oh how many years, about 40, and it cannot but impress. According to its composition, the upper vestibule is divided into 9 parts. I already wrote about the Garni temple that the number 9 was very important for the Armenians.

The upper vestibule is also a mausoleum, and there are burials of the Proshyan family here (gravestones are visible in the photo).

It also has very good acoustics. The monastery used to have a music school and there was a woman among the local composers composing sharakans (Armenian religious chants). According to the canons of that time, a woman could not appear in front of the monks, but nevertheless, the woman composer Saakadukht was very famous, and she was invited to teach in Geghard. True, she taught from behind the curtain.

There is an opening in the upper vestibule that leads to the tomb. According to legend, it was made so that the charakans' chants could penetrate the lower floor.

How to get to Geghard monastery

A trip to Geghard is best combined with a visit to the Garni temple. They are 10 kilometers from each other, so if you rent a car, for example, I often rent a car, or rent a car with a driver, then you will have one road. Any navigation program will guide you.

But on buses it will be more difficult and longer. I wrote about this

I flew there on business for only 4 days. Despite the fact that these cases were beyond our heads, and we were almost washed away there (the rain was pouring all this time) - we managed to travel a little, show my wife and daughter Armenia. We visited Grani, Geghard, Khor Virap. As far as the streams of water pouring down from heaven allowed, they wandered around Yerevan. To our great regret, we did not manage to show Lake Sevan, but I hope that this was not our last visit to Armenia.

Geghard:

Khor Virap:

And now, in order.

Garni.
Garni pagan temple (I c. E.), Located 28 km. from Yerevan in the Azat river valley.
The temple is the only surviving example of ancient Greek architecture on the territory of Armenia.
The temple, together with the fortress walls, was destroyed during the earthquake in 1679. The main building of the temple - the Temple of Mithra - was restored in Soviet times (restoration began in 1949).
The temple was erected in honor of the god Mithra, popular in Asia Minor, whose cult later penetrated into Greece and Rome. The word "Mithra" is synonymous with the Greek word "Helios", which means the sun, the sun god.

Foundation date stone. This stone with an inscription in Greek and a large cross embossed in its upper part indicates the date of the construction of the temple and palace in the 1st century AD. NS.
The inscription, in particular, reads: "Hellenes! King of Armenia Trdat the Great in the eleventh year of his reign built this castle for the queen and this impregnable fortress ..."

Temple of Mithra:

Ruins of the Church of St. Zion and the Chapel of Mashtots

Inside the Temple of Mithra:

Roman Baths:

Azat river gorge:

Geghard.
The monastery complex, located about 40 km. from Yerevan in the Azat river valley.
The word "geghard" (or, closer in pronunciation, "geghard") is translated from the Armenian language as "spear".
The exact date of the foundation of the monastery is unknown, but one of the versions says that the monastery was founded in the 4th century, in the first years of the establishment of Christianity as a state religion in Armenia. It is believed that the founder of the monastery was St. Grigor Lusavorich (Gregory the Illuminator) - the first Catholicos (bishop) of Armenia.
Some of the temples of the monastery complex are completely hollowed out inside the rocks.
Geghard Monastery is included in the UNESCO list of World Cultural Heritage Sites.

Khachkars on the wall of the temple carved into the rock:

Khor Virap
(I must admit that, to my shame, I have never been here before ...)
Khor Virap Monastery and the ancient city of Artashat are located on the very state border with Turkey, on the left bank of the Araks River. Khor Virap is located near the pagan temple of Anahit. It is from here that King Artashes I, having built the capital in 189-188. BC NS. began the reunification of the Armenian lands.
The monastery is famous for the fact that there is a pit-dungeon in which, teeming with scorpions and snakes, St. Grigor Lusavorich (Gregory the Illuminator) languished for 13 years, the spiritual mentor and leader of the first Christians of Armenia, the first Catholicos of Armenia.

Monastery wall with towers:

Khachkar (cross-stone):

Church of the Holy Mother of God:

The chambers of the abbot of the monastery:

Church of St. Grigor Lusavorich (St. Gregory the Illuminator):

The staircase leading to the stone dungeon (the pit of St. Virap), in which St. Grigor Lusavorich languished for 13 years:

View of the Khor Virap monastery from the neighboring hill:

This is the border. Left - Armenia, right - Turkey. The border tower is visible in the distance.

View from the monastery to Ararat, which finally decided to appear to us a little because of the clouds:

Yerevan

View of Yerevan from the observation deck at the monument to 50 years of owls. authorities:

Cafe on the street Abovyan:

Northern Avenue is the "denture" of Yerevan. I've never seen anything so discordant with others:

Singing fountains in Republic Square:

On the day of departure, the weather made us happy again - the rain stopped for several hours and I took a little photo hunt from the window of the cafe at Zvartnots airport on the plane of the "airline", whose services never use in my life... If you are wondering why - ask, I will tell you.

Ararat sailed to the right of the road in a snow-white ship - and was good with any landscape, be it a hilly plateau, a mountain lake nestled in the folds of the earth - or rocks bordered by deep blue shadows. The pink foam of blossoming apricots covered the roadside. So, gazing through the windows, we did not even notice how we got to Garni.

Garni's frozen music

Garni is one of the oldest settlements in Armenia. It is located 28 km east of Yerevan on a picturesque triangular plateau at the foot of the Geghama ridge, on the right bank of the Azat River. The name of the fortress comes from the name of the country Giarniani and those who inhabited it in the 8th century. BC. tribes. Excavations on the territory of the fortress indicate that it was inhabited since the last quarter of the 4th millennium BC. and until the Late Middle Ages. Exposed during the XIII-XVII centuries. the constant raids of the conquerors, the settlement finally collapsed during the earthquake of 1679. Only a century and a half later, after the Russian-Persian and Russian-Turkish wars, in the 1830s, the abandoned and destroyed settlement was restored by the Armenian refugees who returned here from the city of Maku (Persia) and its environs. The monument includes a fortress wall, a temple of the god Mithra, palace and secular buildings, a royal bath, a vishap stele, the foundation of a church of the 7th century. and other historical and cultural buildings.

An ancient pagan temple, rebuilt in Soviet times, partly from authentic stones, partly from new stones. However, too few “real” stones were found in Garni, which is why it was never included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List. During the restoration, although the fragments that remained in place were used, most of the missing ones were made anew from basalt.

The temple was built in the second half of the 1st century, during the reign of Tsar Trdat I. It is dedicated to the sun god Mithra. The figure of the god stood in the depths of the sanctuary - naos. After the proclamation of Christianity in Armenia in 301, the temple was probably used as a summer room for kings, called in the chronicles "the house of coolness." The style of the temple, which is a rectangular building with columns and a pediment, is similar to the classical monuments of Rome. Basically, it is made in Hellenistic architectural forms, but local traditions are also reflected in it. It would seem: a classic view - the wall of the main room and 24 columns of the portico are erected on the podium, a wide staircase leads to the main entrance. However, the details of the building: basalt columns, cornices, capitals, are decorated with well-preserved carvings depicting vines, pomegranate fruits and other elements of ancient Armenian ornament.

By the way, we were lucky - just today the entrance to the territory of the temple for some reason turned out to be free ... And, besides, we arrived a little earlier than the main influx of tourists and were able to calmly, without crowds, wander around the territory of the settlement. The temple towered over the deep gorge of the Azat River in an imposing bulk, majestic and strict. And around him spring raged. Green grass, white cherry blossom ... And the inviting depths of the gorge, green, with a fast-foaming river at the bottom. With bizarre rocks that look like a giant organ.

"Symphony in stone", "Basalt organ" - the locals call this gorge.

As expected, we walked around the temple inside the colonnade three times, looked into the ancient baths, where a mosaic floor measuring 2.9x2.9 meters was opened, which is a unique monument of ancient Armenian culture. The mosaic is laid out on a lime mortar of the smallest gemstones. On the light green background of the sea, with great skill, with subtle transitions of tones (stones of 15 shades were used), deities, mythological creatures are depicted.

But first of all, we were irresistibly attracted to the gorge - well, we could not limit ourselves to the standard program for all excursionists!

Armina was surprised to hear about our idea to go downstairs on foot. "Look at this gorge!" She offered us an excursion downstairs in the car of a local uncle for fifteen hundred rubles. But we didn’t like this idea. The rabid tourists woke up in us. And we, having promised Armine not to stay longer than an hour and a half, ran down the road ...

It was a great adventure! Just what the soul demanded! We ran down a steep descent paved with stone slabs, quickly walked along a dirt road to a fork - and poured along the gravel in goat paths to the bottom of the gorge.

There was paradise below. Paradise. There were tables on the green lawns, the river gurgled, foaming, and the willows bent over the water with lush crowns. A whimsical stone symphony stretched over our heads, and a large black and white predator flew in the sky. Over the cliffs hung like a swallow's nest a house we had recently passed, under it a cliff gaped at a negative angle, and it was not clear how people were not afraid to live in such an extreme ...

We walked a little along the dirt road along the river to the waterfalls running down the rocks. And then we decided to go back with a primer. And they went, gazing around and in full admiration for the wonderful nature of the gorge. The banks of the river gradually flattened out. The rocks on the left were made higher and steeper, forming the same harsh and sharp stripes of a stone organ. Pyramidal poplars stood by the road like graceful candles. The river overflowed with wide rapids, shone under the sun. I felt like lying down on the grass by the water, looking lazily at the sky ...

Someone's houses, plots, gardens with beds between fruit trees began. From the swamp by the road, a characteristic smell pulled, the frog sang in all the voices ... We kept walking and walking, the road stubbornly turned to the right, and soon the former temple of Mithra, high above the rocks, appeared in some absolutely incredible distance. It became obvious that this primer was not going to take us upstairs. Meanwhile, Armina was waiting for us, and she should have returned. We turned back. A group of young men and women marched towards us, many of them in white veils on their heads, and one in a white cassock. We decided that these were pilgrims walking to Geghard Monastery. Along the river it is about five kilometers away. We, too, would love to walk on foot, but it is somehow inconvenient to make our driver wait for us for so long. So we hurried to our goat path. And, sweating from the sun and steepness, as quickly as they could they climbed up it to the familiar fork ...

We managed to meet the agreed hour and a half - to Armina's surprise and joy, we turned around in just ten hours. We were completely delighted with the walk, which gave us so many joyful impressions and inspired a whole fireworks of associations and memories. Slightly tired and pretty out of breath, we went to Geghard. But very soon the next view outside the car windows won us over, and we again asked Armina to make a stop in front of an amazing gorge with bizarre rocks, on which in some places something was growing, blooming in pink. A familiar river ran along the bottom of the gorge. Nearby is a restaurant, covered in white foam of flowering trees. And around the corner Geghard was already waiting for us ...

Geghard. Spear monastery

Just seven kilometers northeast of Garni, up the gorge of the Azat River, there is the famous Geghard Monastery. This place is rightfully famous for its rocky architecture and ancient history. The monastery is located on the slope of an almost closed amphitheater of sheer cliffs cutting into the sky. Behind the next turn of the road winding over a picturesque gorge, Geghard appears almost suddenly in the traveler's field of vision - not immediately noticeable against the backdrop of rocks and forest.

The time of the founding of the monastery is not precisely determined, probably at the beginning of the 4th century a monastery was founded here. Church legends associate the name "Geghard" with the spear of Longinus that was once kept here, according to legend, the very one that pierced Christ on the cross. Actually, the full name of the monastery - "Geghardavank" - literally translates as "Monastery of the Spear". The diamond-shaped plate-tip of this spear, placed in a reliquary, is currently kept in the museum of the Armenian Church in Echmiadzin. The existing ensemble of Geghard dates back to the XII-XIII centuries. The first, under the princes Zakar and Ivane Dolgoruky, no later than 1177, was the chapel of St. Gregory the Illuminator built. It is located quite high above the road, a hundred meters from the entrance to the monastery. In 1215, the main temple, Katokhike, was erected. The completion of work on the first cave church of the monastery - Avazan (Bassein) - dates back to 1240; it was carved on the site of an ancient cave with a spring. In the second half of the 13th century, the monastery was bought by the Proshyan princes. Through their efforts, the Astvatsatsin cave church, the tomb of the Proshyans, was built at the same time. At the same time, in the rocks surrounding the monastery, numerous caves-cells were built, where members of the monastic brethren were in solitude.

The temple in the monastery absolutely conquered us. Ancient stones, covered with carvings, were lost in the twilight, honey light poured from the hole in the dome, orange candle lights flickered. Amazing ornaments, mesmerizing and a little eerie, adorned the walls. The light wandered through the halls in the most bizarre way, and it was not always clear where the reflection of the fire was and where the sun was. A dull bluish ray skewed the space of the temple, emerging from the dome and landing on the stone of the floor with a luminous bright spot, and, passing by it, one could feel a warm touch.

The beam was hot, the sun lived in it, which wanted to expose its face - and then a blinding hot light beat through closed eyelids ...

In the side hall of the temple from a niche in the wall flows, murmuring, a spring with ice water - very tasty and undoubtedly curative. And if you go up the stairs from the courtyard of the temple and go through a stone tunnel with walls decorated with khachkars, you can get to the upper temple. A small viewing hole in the floor and a booming acoustics unites it with the bottom ... We went outside - and again came back. For some reason I didn't want to leave. Children ran around the halls, people took pictures, and no one pulled anyone. Calm and benevolence reigned here. And the atmosphere of some kind of peaceful calm ...

Then we finally went out to the sunny courtyard. Behind the wall a river flowed, bubbling with foam around the stones, a high bridge arched above the river, and on the other bank primroses grew on the slopes, and in a small grotto numerous stone tours stood like mysterious pyramids. Probably - a consequence of some kind of ritual. By the way, the cliffs surrounding the monastery belong to the gorge of the Azat River, which, like the monastery complex, is included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List.

We once again walked around the courtyard of the temple, climbed the stairs along the rocks with intricate khachkars, leading to the monastic cells and a bakery with an oven in the floor - here we were found by Armina, worried about our long absence.

An integral part of the monastery complex is the many (possibly hundreds) of monastic cells carved into the rocks surrounding the monastery. Many of them, including a number near the inner rock church of St. Astvatsatsin, were destroyed during the earthquake. To the east of the Katohike church, at the top of the stone staircase, there are similar cells. They are called "Lusavorich Caves", since it is assumed that at the beginning of the 4th century the founder of the monastery, St. Grigor Lusavorich, lived there. Some of the cells were facing the main church (Katohike) and had altars and work tables cut into the wall. Hermits lived in cells, who came to these hard-to-reach places to detach from worldly desires. The monastery was widely known for its hospitality and its relics - "The True Lance" and a fragment of Noah's ark.

Many ornamented khachkars are carved into the rocks near the cells above the church. Some of them date back to the early medieval period, but most are dated to the 11th-12th centuries. Being the most popular pilgrimage site in Armenia, the monastery received gifts of land, donations, manuscripts and treasures from wealthy pilgrims, whose names are recorded on the walls of the monastery and many khachkars. The color of the khachkars is the result of applying on them the red paint "vordan karmir" - a dye obtained from a certain type of cochineal (worms). Vordan karmir was exported outside the country and was valued in Europe and the Middle East even higher than gold. The durability of the dye has been proven by time - the paint on khachkars is over 800 years old.

Reluctantly, we left the monastery. Clouds floated across the sky, in places white, and in places already darkening, and against the background of the sky the monastery walls and the pink blossoming of apricot trees loomed beautifully. It was time for the return journey. At parting, we bought local fruit marshmallows at the market near the monastery. Armina treated us to a gata bought right there - such a huge and delicious sweet cake that children always order for her from here. On the way back, we also bought marshmallows, apples and various mountain herbs, which the Armenians cook in spring instead of a side dish - so we also switched to grass for dinner ...

In the evening, Ararat covered itself over the tops with thin strips of clouds, casting transparent blue shadows on its snow-white slopes. The mountains under the clouds were just a sight for sore eyes, and all the way back we admired the landscapes opening through the windows.

The Geghard cave monastery is one of the most visited sights of Armenia. It, like the rocky cliffs around the shrine, is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Armenian travel agencies are actively bringing tourists here. But it is much cheaper to come to Geghard on your own. This way you can spend as much time in the monastery as you like.

And then, you have the opportunity to stay here and explore the beautiful gorge of the Gokht River, a tributary of the Azat. Nearby there is a restaurant with excellent cuisine and democratic prices. And just downstream of the Azat River is the unique Garni plateau.

But how to get to the wild Geghard gorge and its monastery? We will answer this question in this article. We'll also show you how to make the most of your day by taking a self-guided day trip to one of the most famous shrines in Armenia.

Why is the monastery called that?

The full name of the monastery is Geghardavank. From the Armenian language it is translated as “the monastery of the spear”. But do not think that the monastery was inhabited by warlike monks-knights like the Templars. Geghard got its name from the spear of the Roman legionary Longinus, with which he pierced the body of the crucified Jesus Christ on Calvary.

The instrument of the Lord's Passion is revered as a relic. The spear of Longinus (according to legend) brought from Jerusalem himself. For a long time, the relic was kept away from the bustle of the world.

But if you are a zealous believer and go to Geghardavank only to bow to the spear of Longinus, we have to disappoint you. This item (whether it was an instrument of the Passion or not is not proven) is now kept in the museum where the throne of the Supreme Catholicos of Armenians is also located. This monastery is located in the city of Vagharshalat.

History of Geghard monastery

As the legend says, this place was mastered by hermits at the dawn of Christianity in Armenia at the initiative of St. Gregory the Illuminator. But historians date the foundation of the monastery to the fourth century.

In one of the caves there is a source. The inaccessible rocks and the availability of fresh water at hand attracted monks to the gorge, fleeing from the bustle of the world in the sketes.

The first hermits dug their cells right in the soft rock. Therefore, the skete was first called Ayrivank, that is, "cave monastery". Later, ground structures also appeared. These were temples and household buildings.

But in the 9th and 10th centuries, the monastery was seriously damaged by Arab raids. The seizure of the monastery by the vice-regent of the Arab caliph Nasr in 923 was especially destructive. The monastery also suffered from frequent earthquakes.

A huge contribution to the revival of this monastery was made by the military leaders of the Queen of Georgia Tamara, Ivane and Zakara Zakoryan, who liberated the region from the Seljuks at the beginning of the 13th century. Their descendants (Khakhbakians and Proshyans) continued to patronize the rocky shrine. Therefore, she became their ancestral tomb.

Where is Geghard monastery located. How to get from Yerevan to this attraction

The monastery is located just 40 kilometers east of the capital of Armenia. If you are planning a one-day independent excursion, then Geghard can be viewed in a complex with the equally famous Garni temple. Moreover, minibuses from Yerevan go only to this town.

But first you need to get to the bus station. From the central Mashtots avenue there is a city minibus No. 51. The journey to the town of Garni costs 250 AMD. Minibuses leave every hour.

In 30 minutes you are already there. From Garni to Geghard Monastery to go about eight kilometers. Half of the way can be done by bus number 284, following to the village of Goght.

The road is very beautiful, flat, serpentine along the gorge. For those pedestrians who want to take a shortcut, there are trails.

It's hard to get off the road. You should focus on a large sculpture of a lioness, visible from afar. And immediately behind it a wonderful panorama of Geghardavank opens.

What to see in Garni. Temple of Mithras

Arriving in a mountain town, you should not rush to Geghard Monastery right away. There is only one pagan temple preserved in Armenia, and it is located in Garni. It is like a piece of ancient Greece in the middle of the Caucasus Mountains: columns, a portico, high steps ...

The temple dedicated to Mithra was built in the first century AD. Its remoteness served him as a good protection, because with the evangelization of Armenia, all pagan buildings were destroyed.

The temple is the only thing that remains of the once formidable stronghold, which was erected on the impregnable plateau of Garni by the king of Urartu Trdat the First - the same one who founded the city of Erebuni, modern Yerevan. Near the temple of Mithras, you can see the ruins of ancient fortress walls, thermae, palace.

The temple is very skillfully decorated with carvings. It is also worth going down the gorge to the Azat River to see the "musical organ" formed by nature from lava flows. Therefore, the Garni plateau is also called the "symphony of stones".

Mashtots Hayrapet Church

The Temple of Mithras is not the only attraction in the town. Honor with a visit to the Christian shrine of Garni. The church was erected on the site of a pagan khachkar - a stone dotted with petroglyphs.

In the 9th century, the Christian ascetic Patriarch Mashtots was buried here, and three centuries later a temple was built over his grave. Its dome and facade, as well as the interior of the tomb, are decorated with skillful carvings, similar to those that can be seen in the rocky monastery of Geghard.

A visit to the Garni Museum is paid - 1200 AMD per person. But if you arrive there on the last Saturday of the month, admission is free. But you still have to pay two and a half thousand drams for a tour in a foreign language.

What to see in Geghardavank. Chapel of St. Gregory the Illuminator

If you are pressed for time, you do not need to stop in Garni, but immediately take a taxi. A trip by car on the route Yerevan - Geghard Monastery - Yerevan will cost you ten thousand drams (1270 rubles at the exchange rate), which is quite inexpensive if you load there four of us. The first step is to stop at the lioness sculpture on a sharp bend in the road to take a panoramic photo of the entire monastery.

The oldest building of the monastery stands separately from it and rather high above the road. This is the chapel of St. Gregory the Illuminator. It was built around 1175. Around it, there are grave khachkars decorated with carvings.

Fragments of medieval frescoes have been preserved in the chapel itself. After examining them, we go down to the gates of the monastery. Pay attention to the ramparts. Despite the inaccessibility of the monastery, the monks erected a high wall on three sides to help the steep relief.

Katoghike

Geghardavank consists of both cave structures carved into the rock and ground structures. The latter include Katoghike. This is the main church of Geghard monastery .

Despite the fact that Longinus's spear is no longer stored there, the temple is still very revered. The layout of the building is based on an equal-armed cross. At the corners of the church there are two-story chapels. Some of them are connected to the caves by covered passages, which makes the temple, as it were, the heart of the entire monastery complex.

Pay attention to the gate located on the southern facade. The tympanum is decorated with stone bunches of grapes, pomegranate fruits, human faces, pigeons. Above the gate is a bas-relief depicting a lion attacking a bull. This stage, carved in stone, symbolizes the power of the prince.

The interior of the church is decorated in austere but impressive manner. Khachkars are visible everywhere - tribute or burial stones, speckled with skillful carving. Divine services are held in Katoghik, candles and icon lamps are lit.

Gavit

For a long time, Geghard Monastery was the center of education in Armenia. People were sent here who wanted not only to get away from the vanity of the world, but also to know God. For their training, a sacristy adjacent to the rock was built at the beginning of the 13th century on the western side of the Katoghike church.

There, novices underwent religious education. The natural lighting of this room is interesting. There are no windows in this sacristy, only there is a round hole in the ceiling in the middle. The stone vault is supported by four columns that divide the room into aisles.

The center of the sacristy is crowned with a dome with "stalactites" - this is the best example of such an architectural technique in Armenia. The interior of the gavit is no less impressive than the church. There, too, everything is dotted with carvings, candles are burning. The harsh, ascetic, but sublime beauty of this place sets the soul in a special way.

Avazan Church

Do not forget that Geghard is a monastery in the rock, and therefore we will not ignore the cave buildings. After all, the first cells of the hermits broke through the rock. It is believed that the monastery at this place did not arise by chance.

Even in pagan times, people came here to bow to the nymph of a miraculous source. The water has not dried up to this day. Now she is proclaimed a miraculous Christian Church. And if you believe in it, stock up on some container and go to Avazan cave church.

Its name is translated as "reservoir". This is the first temple of the monastery, which was completely carved into the rock in 1240, right above the source. To get water, you need to stand in a long line.

From Avazan you can get to the tomb (Zhamatun) of the Proshyan family, as well as the second cave church dedicated to the Mother of God - Astvatsatsin. These buildings were carved in the second half of the 13th century. In the last temple, frescoes depicting angels have been preserved.

On the territory of the monastery complex there are separately dug zhamatuns, in which representatives of the princely families (Grigor and Merik, Ruzakan and Papak) rest. It will also be interesting to walk along the enfilade of cave cells that descend to the church with high stairs carved right into the rock.