Haghartsin is a 13th-century monastery located near the town of Dilijan in the Tavush Province of Armenia. It was built between the 10th and 13th centuries (in the 12th under Khachatur of Taron); much of it under the patronage of the Bagratuni Dynasty. The monastery was built by order of two brothers, princes of the Bagratuni kingdom, and their family seal can be seen on the back of St Stepanos.
Hidden in a verdant valley 13km northeast of Dilijan, Haghartsin ('Dance of the Eagles’) was built between the 10th and 13th centuries and has three churches: one named for Gregory the Illuminator; another for the Virgin Mary (Surp Astvatsatsin); and the third for St Stephen (Stepanos). There are stunning khachkars (don't miss the one on the southern wall of Surp Astvatsatsin), a sundial on the wall of St Gregory, a ruined gavit and a refectory with stunning arched ceiling.
St. Astvatsatsin Church in Haghartsin (1281) is the largest building and the dominant artistic feature. The sixteen-faced dome is decorated with arches, the bases of whose columns are connected by triangular ledges and spheres, with a band around the drum’s bottom. This adds to the optical height of the dome and creates the impression that its drum is weightless. The platband of the southern portal's architrave is framed with rows of trefoils. The sculptural group of the church’s eastern facade differs in composition from the similar bas-reliefs of Sanahin, Haghpat, and Harich. It shows two men in monks’ attire who point with their hands at a church model and a picture of a dove with half-spread wings placed between them. The umbrella roofing of the model’s dome shows the original look of the dome of Astvatsatsin church. The figures are shown wearing different dresses — the one standing right is dressed more richly than the one standing left. The faces, with their long whiskers, luxuriant combed beards and large almond shaped eyes, are also executed in different manners. These are probably the founders of the church, the Father Superior and his assistant.
A recent restoration of the site funded by the Sheikh of Sharjah in the UAE has seen the church buildings lose their historic patina, and many visitors apparently find their bright and shiny appearance disconcerting.
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Lunch at a local B&B. Chris was suffering from a cold and opted to eat in the garden.
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Then on for an overnight at Avan Dzoraget Hotel - owned by the same chap that owns the Tufenkian Hotel in Yerevan
This is a well designed, purpose built hotel from about 2006. It is apparently now run for the benefit of the staff, as there was no manager present to control them. The porters sat fiddling with their mobile phones in the guests lounge area, more staff fiddled with their mobile phones outside the kitchen door, and when I eventually found a barman, he too was fiddling with his mobile phone. Lighting in the public areas was not switched on. The sauna was not working
However it is a very nice building, with unique architecture, in a very pretty setting
It is now run entirely for large tour groups. The dining room is laid up with large tables for 20 to 30 guests, and individuals find themselves swamped by this mass of humanity. . I agree with the reviewer who wrote about this problem. The cut and paste PR responses here are just wrong. They are only interested in groups. The problem for individuals is that the hotel is so remote, that there is no other choice for dinner than to eat here.
There is an indoor pool and sauna, but you have to work hard to find them. The entrance door is at the end of a dark corridor, with no sign on the door to actually say that it is the pool.
Head Office need to send an anonymous guest here to check the place out - perhaps the PR man that writes responses here?. Mr Tufenkian has invested a lot of money in this hotel, and at the moment it is not delivering what he envisaged
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And the next morning we were on to Haghpat and Sanahin Monasteries
Haghpat and Sanahin Monasteries