Aghjots Monastery

Name: Aghjots monastery
Monument type: Monastery complex
Region: Ararat Province
Periods: Medieval

Name: Aghjots monastery

Other nomination: Akhchoy, Aghjuts, Aghchovank, St. Stepanos of Aghjots

Monument type: Monastery complex

Region: Ararat

Location: “Khosrov forest” state reserve

Preservation: The churches are tumble-down. The residential and commercial buildings of the congregation, the fence walls, and the cemetery were severely destroyed.

Coordinates: 40o07’09” 44o43’23”

Altitude: 1750 m

Era and chronology: There is no information about the exact time of the monastery foundation in the chronicle sources. Lithographs and handwritten records are considered the main sources. At the same time, the 2 khachkars with the earliest date (1197) testify that monastic life existed here from a much earlier period (S. Karapetyan).

Based on date records, Garegin Hovsepyan referes the main St. Stepanos Church to 1212-1217. Prominent lithographer S. Saghumyan disputed G. Hovsepyan’s point of view coming into conclusion that the construction has nothing to do with the Zakaryan and Khagbakian ruling dynasties, whose representatives are mentioned in the inscriptions, it was built with public funds (900 monets or 4 kg of gold) in 1207.

Aghjots: Sculptured Stones and Carved Walls Guiding Your Path

You’ll feel like the main character of an otherworldly movie as you make your way through the churches of St. Stephen and St. Paul and Peter of the Aghojts complex.

From shattering earthquakes to destructive battles and devastating pillages, this site has witnessed all the tragedies we can think of. But despite it all, its impressive remnants proudly stand on this picturesque gorge near Garni Village as a hauntingly stunning testament to its glorious past.

What makes Aghjots so unique is the exceptional medieval art that you’ll find abundantly on its inner and outer walls. Looking at those sculptures and narrative depictions, you’ll get a sense of the refined cultural role of this complex, which made it one of Armenia’s most notable scriptoriums.

Although mystery surrounds the exact date of its foundation, we can find hints that Aghjots is very ancient, such as the two oldest cross stones that date back to 1197.

The complex, which was built of bluish truncate basalt, is named St. Stepanos (St. Stephen) of Aghjots after its main church. It also includes the St. Poghos-Petros (St. Paul and Peter) Church and a vestibule.

On the inside, St. Stepanos Church is cross-shaped, while it appears rectangular on the outside. Its ceilings are vaulted at the corners, and its central dome has two-story vaults. The only entrance is on the western side. What remains of the church are the walls and the drum.

The Church of Paul and Peter was built in 1270. It is located north of St. Stepanos, and its construction took place under the guidance of Abbot Jeremiah.

The exceptional feature that sets this church apart is the presence of two life-sized sculptures depicting the apostles Paul and Peter, the first of their kind in Armenian art. These remarkable sculptures are positioned on the right and left sides of the porch.

The church follows a single-nave basilica design, featuring repositories connected to the upper tabernacle and small semi-circular altars. Adjacent to the southern wall, there are two additional storage rooms with a rectangular layout.

The vestibule, constructed between 1222 and 1234, unfortunately stands as the most deteriorated structure within the complex. The northern and southern walls serve as a reminder of what was once considered an impressive structure.

The walls of the buildings constructed in the 13th century bear scattered remnants of the Early Middle Ages. Within the semi-complete vestibule, located on the external northern wall, an alcove houses the sacred stone with an image of an isosceles cross within a circle, which is a characteristic emblem of the 5th to 7th centuries.

The complex once boasted various amenities, including an aqueduct, mill, oil mill, and guest house. A cemetery, abundant with cross-stones, lies approximately 100 meters west of the monastery. On the eastern and northeastern sides, remnants of the eponymous village can be found. The monastery itself boasts numerous inscriptions, with the majority dating back to the 13th century. Additionally, the cemetery preserves 11th-century cross-stones.

The monastery served as a renowned scriptorium center in medieval Armenia. Its most ancient manuscript is the well-known “Commentary of Daniel” from 1268.

The structure is well-known for its exquisite external and internal sculptural decorations, such as eight-pointed stars on the main church facade, the “Daniel in the lion’s den” sculpture on the southern wall, bird sculptures, and intricately carved cross-stones.

The splendor of Aghjots has inspired a fascinating legend. According to the story, the foundation of the monastery is intertwined with the name of St. Gregory the Illuminator. The Hripsimian virgins, along with their fellow priest Stepanos, sought sanctuary in Armenia, escaping the persecutions of King Tiridates. They found refuge in the Garni valleys, but unfortunately, after a prolonged struggle, Stepanos passed away at the very location where the future monastery would be built.

In the early 4th century, St. Gregory the Illuminator established a hermitage in that place, which later evolved into a monastery. He named it Aghjots, in honor of the virgins who had sought refuge there.

It is also said that the monastery holds the sacred relics of St. Stepanos and St. Aristakes in the form of their right hands, which are preserved within its premises.

FACTS

❈ The splendid sculptures and artistically carved inner and outer walls give Aghjots its distinctive identity. This includes life-sized sculptures of the apostles Paul and Peter, which were considered groundbreaking in Armenian art at the time.

❈ This was one of the most significant scriptoriums of Medieval Armenia. Its oldest manuscript is the “Commentary of Daniel,”
which dates back to 1268.

❈ The main structures of the monastic complex are the churches St. Stepanos and St. Paul and Peter, as well as a vestibule.

❈ Aghjots has endured a pillage in the 17th century, the devastating 1679 earthquake, and the Armenian-Tatar clashes
of 1905–1906.
Despite the destruction caused by these events, the remaining remnants stand as a testament to its impressive yet
sometimes tragic past.

❈ Legend has it that the right hands of St. Stepanos and St. Aristakes are preserved within the monastery.

🔍 Research history

The history and architecture of the monastery were studied by Gh. Alishan, the Russian imperial archaeological expedition (V. Sisoev, Taragros, Kh. Dadyan), more thoroughly by G. Archbishop Hovsepyan, lithographer S. Saghumyan, art critic L. Zakaryan (sculptural decoration). Other authors also addressed (H. Eprikyan, N. Archbishop Tsovakan, S. Deacon Karapetyan).

🧱 Archaeological description

Location
It is located 6 km south-east of the village of Garni, on the right southern slope of the eponymous river.

Architecture
It consists of St. Stepanos and Poghos-Petros churches, the vestibule, the wall built in the late period, with the remains of residential and economic buildings preserved next to it. The buildings of the complex are built of bluish truncate basalt.

St. Stepanos Church is a cross-shaped structure on the inside, rectangular on the outside, with vaulted ceilings at the corners, and a central dome with two-story vaults (external dimensions: 9.85 x 8.32 m). The transition from the domed square to the drum was accomplished by sails. The only entrance is from the western front. The paving stones are hewn. The walls, the lower row of the drum have been preserved.

St. Poghos-Petros Church (1270) adjacent to Stepanos from the north was built during the leadership of Abbot Jeremiah. It is a single-nave basilica structure with repositories adjacent to the upper tabernacle with small semi-circular altars. There are 2 more storage rooms with a rectangular plan adjacent to the southern wall. For the first time in Armenian art, human-sized sculptures of apostles Paul and Peter appear on the right and left sides of the church porch.

The badly preserved building of the monument group is the spacious vestibule adjacent to St. Stepanos Church to the west, built in 1222-1234 (G. Hovsepyan). Only the northern (including the eastern part of the sculptured entrance frame) and southern walls have been partially preserved. The intersecting high arches, carriying the oath (as in Khorakert, Varagavank, Deghdzut), rested on 2 pairs of masonry with powerful anchors and capitals. Supposedly, there was another entrance from the south (S. Karapetyan).

Separate fragments of the Early Middle Ages are piled up on the walls of the built buildings built in the XIII century. The holy stone of the old temple’s lintel with the image of an isosceles cross in a circle, typical of the V-VII centuries, is in the alcove of the northern wall (external) of the semi-complete vestibule (S. Karapetyan).

It had its own aqueduct, mill, oil mill and guest house. About 100 m west of the monastery is the cemetery rich in khachkars, and on the eastern and north-eastern sides are the ruins of the eponymous village. The monastery is rich in inscriptions, with the vast majority dating back to the XIII century. 11th century crosstones were preserved in the cemetery (S. Karapetyan).

It was looted at the beginning of the 17th century, suffered from the 1679 earthquake. During the Armenian-Tatar clashes in 1905-1906, the dome of the main church, the vestibule and St. Peter’s Church were destroyed.

🌍 Significance

It was one of the scriptorium centers of medieval Armenia (the earliest dated manuscript is Vardan Areveltsi’s “Commentary of Daniel” in 1268, manuscripts from the 15th century have been preserved). The monastery is notable for its rich external and internal sculptural decoration (eight-pointed stars on the facade of the main church stage, the scene of “Ahegh Dastastan” on the entrance porch, a sundial and the sculpture “Daniel in the lion’s den” on the southern wall, bird sculptures, sculptured khachkars, etc.).

📜 Traditional legends

The legend relates the monastery foundation with the name of St. Gregory the Iluminator. The Hripsimian virgins who found refuge in Armenia with their fellow priest Stepanos, fleed from the persecutions of King Tiridates and found refuge in the Garni valleys, but after a long struggle, the priest died at the site of the future monastery, and at the beginning of the IV century St. Gregory the Iluminator built a hermitage, then a monastery, naming it Aghjots (after the virgins). The right hands of St. Stepanos and St. Aristakes are kept in the monastery.

📚 Sources

Literature

Hovsepyan G. 1928, Khagbakyank or Proshyank in Armenian history, part 1, Vagharshapat, 304 pages, part 2, Jerusalem, St. Yakobeants printing house, 1942, 292 pages, ht. 3, New York, 1942/3, 247 pages.
Saghumyan S. 1986, On the question of the construction of a historical monument, Historical Journal, N 2, p. 190-205.
Zakaryan L.. 2007, Aghjots St. Stepanos, Yerevan, Yerevan University Press, 276 pages.
Karapetyan S. 2022, “Khosrov Reserve” Guide, Yerevan, RAA Foundation, 128 pages.
Materials on the archaeology of the Caucasus, collected by the expeditions of the Moscow Archaeological Society. Issue. XIII / ed. P. S. Uvarova and Kh. I.
Kuchuk-Ioannesov. Moscow, 1916, 245 p.

List of monuments
Ararat 3.99.1.1