Holy Saviour's monastery of Yerazgavors
| Holy Saviour's monastery of Yerazgavors Երազցավորսի Սբ.Ամենափրկչի վանք | |
|---|---|
 S. Amenaprkitch Monastery | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Armenian Apostolic Church |
| District | Akyaka |
| Province | Kars |
| Region | Armenian highlands |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Damaged by Turks in 1920 |
| Status | Ceased functioning as a monastery in 1920 |
| Location | |
| Location |  Akyaka, Kars province
Armenian highland |
| State | Turkey |
  Shown within Turkey | |
| Geographic coordinates | 40°41′38″N 43°44′12″E / 40.6939°N 43.7366°E |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Armenian church |
| Style | Armenian |
| Completed | 890 A.D. |
Yerazgavorsi Surb Amenaprkitchi Vank (Holy Saviour of All) (
capital of the medieval Bagratid (Bagratuni) Armenian Kingdom
.
History
S. Amenaprkitch was commissioned by the Bagratid King Smbat I in Yerazgavors (Shirakashat) town in
Zakarid period at the end of the 12th century. An inscription on its walls mentioned that restoration work was undertaken between 1072 and 1081. At a later date the church was converted into a fortified tower. During this conversion the eastern niches and many of the windows were filled in, and the corners of the church were heightened. An external staircase was also added at the northern end of the west façade. The dome of the church had collapsed by the 19th century. Nikolai Marr
noted the remains of the polygonal drum of the original dome. That dome had collapsed at a distant period and had been replaced by a conical dome with a smaller diameter. The replacement dome had also mostly collapsed and had been replaced by a covering of wooden beams that were, by 1913, rotten and about to fail. Marr wrote that in 1913 the building was undergoing repairs and was being converted into the village's parish church. He mentions that during those repairs the villagers had dug up many architectural fragments, but none had been recorded and most had just been reused in new buildings. He also mentions "two magnificent capitals" that had been recovered by the villagers and were now stored inside the church.
