The St. Kristapor Monastery Complex, a testament to the 7th-century architecture, is conveniently located just 2.5 km south of the Dashtadem fortress in Aragatsotn Province. This location allows you to explore both sites easily on a single Armenia trip.
The complex itself is a treasure trove, housing the Holy Mother of God church, a three-storeyed bell tower, an enclosure wall made of unrefined stones, and a cemetery adorned with Armenian Khachkars(cross-stones) dating back to the 10-14th centuries. The cemetery includes tombstones belonging to people who escaped Sassoun during the Armenian Genocide. What’s even more fascinating is that you can find an ancient serpent monolith, otherwise called Vishapakar (“Dragon stone”), within the cemetery that dates back to the 2nd millennium BC.
The church has been operating since the 6th century. The structure’s interior is illuminated by windows on the upper portion of the wall, creating a captivating view when gazed up from inside the church.
The Holy Mother of God church had been constructed of orange and gray tuff stone and was completely renovated in 1980.
Several of the stones on the exterior facades of the southern and western portions of the building bear Armenian inscriptions. Above the main body of the church is a single compound dome surrounded by an octagonal facade. A portal to the west serves as the only entrance to the interior. The interior of the church is unadorned and reminiscent of Kamsarakan S. Astvatsatsin Church, found in the nearby village of Talin, within the Talin Cathedral complex.
