Akhtala monastery and fortress

Confession: Armenian Apostolic Church
Date of foundation: X century.
Status:Active monastery
Condition: Good
From Yerevan: 194 km / 2 hours 50 minutes.

The city of Akhtala is located in the Lori region of Armenia, at the foot of Lalvar, on the left bank of the Debed. In the Middle Ages, the city was called Pkhndzakhank (“Copper Mine”). Kirkos Gandzaketsi in his “History of Armenia” mentions that Prince Ivane Zakaryan died in 1241 and was buried in Phndzakhanka, which he took from the Armenians and turned into a Georgian (that is, Orthodox) church. We are talking about the church in Akhtala. According to Gandzaketsi, the son of Ivane A, Prince Avag (died in Bjni in 1250), is buried in the same church.

In 1887-1880, the French archaeologist architectJacques de Morgandiscovered stone tombs, clay, bronze and iron finds in Akhtala dating back to the 8th century BC. A tomb from the times when people were buried sitting down was also discovered here.

Akhtala Monastery is one of those Orthodox complexes, the construction of which coincided with the Renaissance period in Armenia. The monastery was built in the city by the daughter of Prince Kurike G. Kurikyan, Mariam. The complex of monuments harmoniously combines Armenian, Georgian and Byzantine architectural elements.

Church of St. Astvatsatsin Akhtali(Holy Mother of God) was the largest Orthodox monastery in Northern Armenia; in the 12th-13th centuries it served as a spiritual, educational and cultural center. The institution especially studied Armenian and Georgian chronicles.

In the church of St. Astvatsatsin’s amazing fresco is well preserved, and only the image of the Virgin’s face was damaged during Tamerlane’s invasions. The mountain in front of the fortress bears his name. The fresco was painted in the 13th century, when the church became Orthodox. In terms of color schemes, it is close to Byzantine, but the choice of themes is completely Armenian. It is said that the too bright colors distracted the faithful during the service, and the priest, in anger, ordered the images to be covered with lime.

The territory of the monastery is surrounded by protective walls of the 10th century with towers, built during the reign of Bagratuni Kyurikyan; the walls extend from north to south along the entire perimeter of the square.