Kayan Berd

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Kayan Berd

Kayan Berd (also Kayanberd or Dsevank , Armenian Կայանբերդ or Դսեվանք ) is a fortress and a former monastery of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Lori Province in northern Armenia .

location

The fortress is located between the Haghpat and Sanahin monasteries . There the Kayan Berd was built in a strategically favorable location at the end of a ridge between two canyons above the Debed River.

Building description

The exact year of construction of the fortress is unknown. It is possible that King Ashot II. Yerkat had it built as early as the 10th century. The fortress is largely destroyed. The wall ring encloses a triangular area and was provided with semicircular defense towers. Inside the area, the church Surb Astvatzatzin (( Armenian Սուրբ Աստվածածին , "Holy Mother of God "), western Armenian Surp Asdwadsadsin , other transcriptions Surp Astvatsatsin, Surb Astuacacin ) from Dsevank. It was built from black tuff. Its blue, red and white dome was damaged in an earthquake in 1827. The dome was built in the right corner of the fortress, with which it shares an outer wall. There are also numerous ruins of houses, cisterns and water pipes made of clay. In the associated village there is a grave field from the early Iron Age.

history

In the middle of the 11th century, Haghpat was the religious center of Lori, rivaling the brother monastery of Sanahin. According to the medieval historian Kirakos Gandzaketsi, the Archbishop of Haghpat, Hovhannes, had the fortress built as a monastery with massive defensive walls on Sanahiner soil in 1233. He came from the Georgian-Armenian Zakarid dynasty and was a son of the sister of the Armenian princes Zakare and Ivane Zakarian. The facility was initially named Surb Nshan Monastery . Surp Nschan ( Armenian sacred sign ) is a saint name. The names Dsevank and Kayan Berd or Kayanberd are of more recent origin.

The situation on Sanahiner soil led to a conflict between the two monasteries. After the bishop's death, the Tatars had the walls of the monastery torn down in 1241. It was then restored and destroyed by Timur's troops at the end of the 14th century . After that it was not rebuilt.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Baghdasaryan Brothers: Kayanberd (Dsevank) fortress. Retrieved November 27, 2017 .
  2. ^ A b Deirdre Holding: Armenia with Nagorno Karabagh: the Bradt travel guide . Fourth ed. Chalfont St. Peter 2014, ISBN 978-1-84162-555-3 , pp. 259 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  3. ↑ Kayan Berd - Armeniapedia.org. Retrieved November 27, 2017 (English). (Copy from: Raffi Kojian: Rediscovering Armenia: an archaeological / touristic gazetteer and map set for the historical monuments of Armenia . Tigran Mets, Yerevan 2001, ISBN 99930-52-28-0 )
  4. ^ Rediscovering Armenia Guidebook - Tavush Marz - Armeniapedia.org. Retrieved November 27, 2017 (English).

Coordinates: 41 ° 5 ′ 43.4 ″  N , 44 ° 41 ′ 56.9 ″  E