Yot Verk Matur ( hy, Յոթ Վերք Մատուռ; meaning, "Seven Wounds Chapel") is a small monument erected around the late 14th-century in remembrance of seven lords of seven villages. Local folklore tells that when the

Turko-Mongol The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century, among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongol elites of these Khanates eventually a ...

conqueror

Timur Lenk Timur ; chg, ''Aqsaq Temür'', 'Timur the Lame') or as ''Sahib-i-Qiran'' ( 'Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction'), his epithet. ( chg, ''Temür'', 'Iron'; 9 April 133617–19 February 1405), later Timūr Gurkānī ( chg, ''Temür Kür ...

came into Armenia, he made war against the seven lords. As a result of the battles, the lords were killed and their villages were destroyed by Timur. Seven

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

s were placed in a row upon a low-rock wall enclosure as a memorial to the lords. The center khachkar dominates the others. The memorial is located in the mountains south-east of the ruins of the fortified

Urartian Urartian or Vannic is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language which was spoken by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom of Urartu (''Biaini'' or ''Biainili'' in Urartian), which was centered on the region around Lake Van and had its capital, Tushpa, ...

settlement of

Teyseba Odzaberd ( hy, Oձաբերդ; meaning "Serpent's Fortress"; formerly Teyseba referring to the Urartian fortification and named after the god Teisheba; also known as Ishkanaberd meaning "Lord's Fortress") is located upon a hill east of the town of ...

, also known as

Odzaberd Odzaberd ( hy, Oձաբերդ; meaning "Serpent's Fortress"; formerly Teyseba referring to the Urartian fortification and named after the god Teisheba; also known as Ishkanaberd meaning "Lord's Fortress") is located upon a hill east of the town of ...

and also in close proximity to the modern-day village of Tsovinar. Geographically it is located at the south-east corner of

Lake Sevan Lake Sevan ( hy, Սևանա լիճ, Sevana lich) is the largest body of water in both Armenia and the Caucasus region. It is one of the largest freshwater high-altitude (alpine) lakes in Eurasia. The lake is situated in Gegharkunik Province, ...

, which can be seen in the distance at a highpoint amongst the ruins of

Khrber The Khrber (Armenian: Խռբեր; Transliteration: xṙbēr; also Karmrashen) ruins are the remains of an ancient town situated in the mountains 8 kilometers south-east from the ruins of the fortified Urartian city of Teyseba, also known as Odzab ...

where the memorial lies within. There are a number of medieval khachkars, headstones, and tombs in Khrber. The oldest graves are located at the base of a hill just south of the ruins.

References

{{coord missing, Armenia Archaeological sites in Armenia Tourist attractions in Gegharkunik Province Buildings and structures in Gegharkunik Province