The small church of Saint Sarkis (

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

: Սուրբ Սարգիս եկեղեցի; pronounced ''Surp Sarkis'') is located in the foothills south of Lake Sevan in the Gegharkunik Province of

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

. The structure was built between the 12th to 13th centuries and sits south of the village of Tsovinar on a promontory overlooking a small

gorge A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...

. It has no

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 ...

, and a nearly flat roof covered in living grass. The church was allegedly "rebuilt" in the 20th century, but it is more likely that the roof and some of the stonework had just been repaired. Surrounding Surp Sarkis is a small cemetery of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

graves, and just below the church in the ravine is a spring and cave.

Gallery

Image:S. Sarkis Grave Tsovinar.JPG, Medieval gravestone in front of the church

References

Bibliography

* Armenian Apostolic churches in Armenia Tourist attractions in Gegharkunik Province Buildings and structures in Gegharkunik Province 13th-century Oriental Orthodox church buildings 13th-century churches in Armenia {{Armenia-OO-church-stub