Noravank

Listen first. Wind moves down the gorge and brushes against the cliffs. A raven calls somewhere above you. The rock walls on every side are a deep rust red, and in the afternoon they seem to hold the heat of the sun. Under your feet, the stone path is worn smooth. Ahead, a cluster of honey-coloured churches sits on a narrow ledge. It is a quiet place, and the quiet is part of the reason it was built here.

You are standing at Noravank, a medieval Armenian monastery in the province of Vayots Dzor, a short drive from the village of Areni. The name means New Monastery. It sits at the end of a narrow canyon carved by a small river, the Amaghu. The road you came along follows the water through the gorge. The monks who settled here wanted distance from the world, and the cliffs gave it to them. Even today, the gorge seems to close behind you as you drive in.

Most of what you see dates from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Armenian history calls this a time of revival. Much of the country was under Mongol rule, but some local noble families kept real power and wealth. Here in the region of Syunik, the most powerful family was the Orbelians. They became the patrons of Noravank. They paid for its churches, and they chose it as their burial place. In a sense, the monastery was their family seat in stone.

Look at the main church first, the one dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, called Surb Karapet in Armenian. It was built in the early thirteenth century. In front of it stands a gavit — a square entrance hall that is typical of Armenian monasteries. A gavit served as a meeting room, a classroom, and sometimes a burial hall. People gathered here before they entered the church itself. Step inside and notice how the light falls through the opening in the roof.

Now look up at the doorway of the gavit. Above it, there is a carved panel called a tympanum. Here is the first surprise. The carving shows God the Father as a bearded figure. In Armenian church art, and in most Christian art of this period, images of God the Father in human form are very rare. Artists usually showed Christ instead. Scholars still discuss what the carver intended. Take a moment to find the face in the stone.

The building most people photograph is the church of the Holy Mother of God, Surb Astvatsatsin. It is the tall structure with two storeys and a round drum on top. It was completed in the fourteenth century, around 1339. This church is the work of a man named Momik. He was an architect, a sculptor, and also a painter of manuscripts. Few artists of medieval Armenia are known to us by name, but Momik is one of them.

Walk to the front of this church and look at the steps. Two narrow stone staircases rise along the face of the wall. They have no railings. They are the only way to reach the upper chapel. This is the second surprise — the stairs are part of the facade itself, not hidden inside. They are steep and very narrow. If you climb them, go slowly, hold the wall, and come down facing the steps.

The lower floor of this church had a different purpose. It was a burial vault for members of the Orbelian family. The upper floor was the chapel for prayer. So the building holds the dead below and the living above. Look for the carved figures around the doorways on both levels. Momik and his workshop covered these surfaces with fine detail: vines, birds, and religious scenes cut into the warm stone.

Around the monastery, you will see tall carved stone slabs called khachkars. The word means cross-stone. A khachkar is a uniquely Armenian art form. Each one has a cross at its centre, often rising from a rosette or a seed shape, with lace-like patterns around it. No two are exactly alike. Momik made several khachkars, and his work here is some of the finest of its kind. Stand close and follow one line of the pattern with your eyes.

The complex also includes a small chapel dedicated to Saint Gregory, built against the main church. Nearby, the walls and foundations of other monastery buildings show where the monks once lived and worked. Over the centuries, earthquakes damaged the site, and some parts collapsed. Large restoration works took place in the twentieth century. As you walk, you can sometimes see where newer stone meets older stone. The colours do not match perfectly, and that is honest repair.

The valley below has another story. This region is one of the oldest wine areas in the world. Not far from here, near Areni, archaeologists excavated a cave and found remains of very early winemaking — among the oldest known anywhere. The Areni grape still grows in the vineyards along the road. Many small wineries and roadside stands sell local wine and dried fruit. It is worth stopping on your way back down the gorge.

Before you leave, walk to the edge of the terrace. Look out at the cliffs across the canyon. In the late afternoon, the red rock turns darker and warmer, and the churches glow against it. You may see families lighting thin candles, or a small wedding party taking photographs. Noravank is a monument, but it is also a living church. People still come here to pray, to celebrate, and to remember.

Take one last look at the stairs on the front of Momik's church, and at the face of God above the gavit door. Listen again for the wind in the gorge. The monks chose this ledge for silence, and the silence is still here. As you walk back toward the road, notice how the cliffs rise behind you — and how quickly the churches disappear into the red stone.