Neghuts Monastery () is a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

founded in the 10th or 11th century, situated in a clearing on a hillside overlooking a valley and the village of Arzakan in the

Kotayk Province Kotayk (, ), is a provinces of Armenia, province (''Administrative divisions of Armenia, marz'') of Armenia. It is located at the central part of the country. Its capital is Hrazdan and the largest city is Abovyan. It is named after the Kotayk c ...

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

. The monastery is located approximately northwest of the village center. There are other churches in the vicinity, most notably the 13th-century monastic/church ruins of Ghuki Vank, the church ruins of S. Astvatsatsin (1207), and the 13th-century ruins of Surb Gevorg.

Architecture

The monastery consists of the Church of Surb Astvatsatsin (''Holy Mother of God'') with a large adjoining

gavit A ''gavit'' (; gawit’) or ''zhamatun'' (Armenian: ) is a congressional room or mausoleum added to the entrance of a church, and therefore often contiguous to its west side, in a Medieval Armenian monastery. It served as narthex (entrance to the ...

. Just south of and adjacent to the church and gavit, are the remains of a rectangular depression of a building that had once consisted of two rooms. There are the remnants of a large doorway and four

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

s. It may have served as a small church with a gavit. Further upon the hill east of the main church, is a medieval cemetery with a small chapel. S. Astvatsatsin Church has three walls that have remained intact, while its southern wall and most of the

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

and

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

have since collapsed. The structure is relatively unadorned in comparison to its adjoining gavit. It has narrow windows at the north wall and

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

, and would have presumably had another at the south wall. A portal leads into the gavit of the church from the west, directly across from the altar. The gavit abuts the hillside at its northwestern wall. All of the original walls, ceiling, and parts of the dome remain standing, while the exterior has not fared so well. Access to the gavit is through either the main and elaborately decorated entry at the south wall, an alternative entry at the opposite (north) wall, or from S. Astvatsatsin as mentioned earlier. Four very large columns support the vaulting that bears the weight of the roof above. The vaulting for the dome consists of six intersecting

arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...

es that form an oculus in the center to let light into the space. Several 13th-century inscriptions may be found upon the walls, columns,

capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

s, and arches. There are some large low-relief carvings of

khachkar A ''khachkar'' (also spelled as ''khatchkar'') or Armenian cross-stone (, , խաչ ''xačʿ'' "cross" + քար ''kʿar'' "stone") is a carved, memorial stele bearing a cross, and often with additional motifs such as rosette (design), rosettes ...

s on the walls as well.

Gallery

File:Neghutsi Vank Southeast.JPG Image:Վանական համալիր Նեղուցի վանք (Արզականի վանք, Սբ. Աստվածածին, Նեղոց Սբ. Աստվածածին).JPG, View of Neghutsi Vank and Arzakan in the background Image:Նեղուցի վանք գ Արզաքան (9).JPG, View of the monastery Image:Neghutsi Vank Southwest.JPG, Southwest view of the monastery Image:Neghutsi Vank Large Khachkar.JPG, Large khachkar near S. Astvatsatsin Image:Ht153170.JPG, Gavit dome Image:Neghutsi Chapel Southwest.JPG, Southwest view of the chapel Image:Neghutsi Chapel Door.JPG, Chapel door

References

Bibliography

External links

Armeniapedia: Arzakan Village

FindArmenia.com: Neghuts S. Astvatsatsin Monastery
Armenian Apostolic monasteries in Armenia Tourist attractions in Kotayk Province Buildings and structures in Kotayk Province {{ArmenianApostolic-church-stub