Description of the attraction
Hayravank Monastery, located in the village of the same name on the rocky shore of the amazing high-mountainous Lake Sevan, is one of the main Christian attractions of this region.
The monastery was founded in the IX century. The monastery complex consists of a church, a chapel built in the X century, and a narthex, attached to the church in the XII century. After a while, side-chapels were built on the eastern side of the church. Around the monastery there is a huge number of gravestones and khachkars, which are part of the ancient cemetery. The church was built of rough hewn stone.
The main entrance to the monastery is framed by many crosses, which have been applied to the monastery walls by pilgrims who come here for many hundreds of years. The entrance is not so magnificently decorated as in other similar temples of the XIII-XV centuries. Its main decoration is a wide semicircular stripe. The portal is closed by a creaky door. Once upon a time there was a second entrance directly above the cliff, to which a steep narrow path led from the courtyard. This entrance is currently blocked.
Light enters the church through narrow window openings. The architect most likely used this play of light as an artistic effect to decorate the interior of this gloomy temple with the rays of the sun.
The architectural appearance of the monastery building looks like a rough outline of Armenian churches of the XIII century. Some elements of the new style and characteristic features belonging to later temples are clearly visible here. However, they are still very far from perfect. For example, the edges of the tent have not yet acquired a natural curvature and still remain straight, which makes the drum look unfinished.
The Hayravank monastery offers an amazing view of the lake and its surroundings.
