The Armenian monastery of Khtzkonk, near Digor village, Kars region, Turkey. THE MONASTERY OF KHTZKONK The Individual Churches Church of Saint John the Baptist (Surb Karapet) This was probably the oldest church in the monastery, and may date from as early as the seventh century or from the 10th century (although the umbrella-shaped roof over the dome must be later than this). The oldest inscription on its walls was dated 1001 (or 1006) and mentioned Queen Katranideh of Ani, the wife of King Gagik. The church had a four apsed interior, with a domed roof whose drum rested on squinches. Only a small fragment of wall and the foundations of the apse survives today. Church of the Holy Mother of God (Surb Astuacacin) This small church lay on the southern side of St. Karapet. It is probably from the 10th century. The interior was little more than a square plan with semicircular apse and covered by a dome. There was traces of a hall built against both it and St. Karapet. Nothing now survives of this church. Church of Saint Stephanos Nakhavka It was built on a separate spur of rock opposite St. Karapet and was probably a 10th or 11th century structure. Its plan was rectangular on the outside, cruciform on the interior, with a semicircular apse flanked by two side chapels. The entrance was on the southern (hidden and hard to reach) side. Grouped around the church were the monumental bases of several khatchkars that were not preserved. The church was said to have been surrounded by the graves of martyrs from the 1208 siege of the city of Ketchror (Gechivan / Tunçkaya). Only fragments of the base of this church now survives. Church of Saint Gregory the Illuminator This building stood further to the east of the other churches. Again it was probably a 10th or 11th century construction. It was a tall church in relation to its small floorplan, and had a walled enclosure containing a particularly large khatchkar from the year 1031 set within a vaulted shrine. This church is now completely destroyed, nothing but a few shattered fragments of masonry remain. Medieval graves on the slopes above this church were destroyed by treasure hunters in 1986.

1.   The foundations of the Saint Karapet church 2.   The church of Saint Stephanos 3.   Church of Saint Gregory and its khatchkar shrine 4.   The remains of the church of Saint Gregory 5.   Desecrated graves near the Saint Gregory church

6.   The church of Saint Sargis today - click for a larger photo

7.   Cracks in the northern facade - click for a larger photo

8.   Damage to the southern facade - click for a larger photo

Church of Saint Sargis "In the name of God, in the year 1214, I, Davit son of Grigor, general under the chief Zakaria, saw the splendour of the Holy monastery of Khtzkonk ... and I gave half the village of Vahanardzesh, which is in my possesion, to Surb Sargis church as a memorial to myself and my parents. Because of this, I, Hovhannes the abbot and vardapet, and the other brothers, have ordained that an annual liturgy should be celebrated by me in all the churches on the feasts of David, Hokob, Paughos and Petros, and the Holy Shoghakat without fail. If anyone opposes or obstructs this memorial, as much as God has blessed that man, may he be cursed." - Inscription on the north face of the Saint Sargis church This was the largest church in the monastery, and it is the only one still standing. It has no inscriptions that mention the date or circumstances of its construction. However, according to the 12th century historian Samuel of Ani, it was commissioned in 1025 by a Prince Sargis. The earliest inscription on its walls is dated 1033. Another inscription, from 1211, records the liberation of the monastery from the hands of the Muslims. It is a domed, four-apsed, centrally-planned, church contained within a circular exterior. The dome rests on a drum supported on pendentives. This dome has an angular umbrella shaped roof - if this is also from 1025 then it is the earliest surviving example of this form of roof in an Armenian church. There are small rooms on two levels in each of the four corners. The lower rooms were chapels. The upper rooms - accessed through small and hard to reach openings high in the interior wall - were probably used for the storage of valuables and also gave access to the roof of the church. There is a window in each apse; on the interior these windows are framed by a highly unusual architectural moulding. This is in the form of a curved, open-bed pediment resting on columns embedded into the wall of the apse. Between the pediment and column is a strange entablature that appears to represent layers of turned wooden cylinders. The top of the pediment overlaps a moulded cornice that runs around the whole interior - such an overlapping of elements is also extremely unusual in Armenian architecture. The outside walls are encircled by graceful blind arcading that divides the facade into twenty sides. Incised into many of the flat surfaces between these arcades are long inscriptions written in large, clear, deeply carved lettering. Built beside the northern wall of the church was a large khatchkar set within an elaborate vaulted shrine. There was a similar monument on the south-eastern side of the church. A Final Analysis The Saint Sargis church was built at the end of the most flourishing period of the so-called "Ani School" of Armenian architecture. The quality of the construction and finish of the masonry in this church exceeds anything that survives at Ani. Its overall design is extremely well worked out, and the architectural details are also more refined, mature, and carved to a higher standard. It shows what might have been if historical circumstances had allowed architectural evolution to continue at Ani. (Many of these architectural ideas were taken up again when conditions allowed for the resumption of building activities in this region during the 13th century - so much so that this church was once considered to be from that later period). The impression given is of a building not made out of many individual blocks of stone, but carved, like an enormous sculpture, out of a single mass of creamy-orange rock. The design of Saint Sargis is praiseworthy, but the overall appearance of Khtzkonk must have been quite breathtaking. The layout of the monastery, perched at the edge of cliffs and encircled by even higher cliffs, presented an extraordinary picturesque harmony of architecture and environment. The rigorous geometry, smooth surfaces, and sharp edges of the five churches were a startling contrast to the natural landscape of the gorge that surrounded them, but at the same time they complemented and seemingly effortlessly integrated themselves into that environment. As a result of the deliberate destruction of Khtzkonk in the 1950s, all that is now left to reveal this are a few precious old photographs. ... back to the first page about Khtzkonk.

9.   Inside the Saint Sargis church; photograph is ©Richard and Ann Elbrecht - click for a larger photo 10.   Looking up at the dome, the geometry is perfect - click for a larger photo 11.   Looking down from the drum of the dome 12.   The angular "umbrella shaped" roof 13.   Carved Inscriptions - click for a larger photo 14.   The blind arcading - click for a larger photo

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