ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENTS OF THE NAGORNO KARABAKH REPUBLIC
DADIVANK MONASTERY
The Memorial Complex of Dadivank (St. Dadi) Monastery (9th-13th century)
Photos by Boris Baratov
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St. Mariam Astvatzatzin ( St. Mary ). Fresco, Memorial Cathedral. Click on picture to enlarge
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Dadivank Monastery. General view. Click on picture to enlarge
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The Monastery of St. Dadi, otherwise called Dadivank or Khutavank ( i.e. "Monastery Upon-The-Hill," in Armenian), is the largest monastic complex in Artsakh-Karabakh and one of true masterpieces of Armenian medieval architecture. It is located in the northwestern part of Mardakert district of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, on the territory of Artsakh's historical province of Upper Khachen.
According to the legend, the monastery was founded at the end of the 1st century AD and named after one of apostle Jude's disciples, St. Dadi, who martyred preaching Christianity in the Eastern Territory of Armenia. Dadivank was first mentioned in medieval chronicles in the 9th century. The monastic complex of Dadivank consists of the Memorial Cathedral (Katoghike), Church of the Holy Virgin, Chapel, Memorial Bell-Tower and several auxiliary buildings.
The central building of the monastery, Memorial Cathedral, was erected in the year 1214 by the Queen Arzou of Haterk.
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The interior walls of the Memorial Cathedral are richly decorated with frescoes. Part of a large inscription in Armenian, which covers the entire entrance wall of the Cathedral (see picture below), reads: "I, Arzou-Khatoun, obedient servant of Christ ... wife of King Vakhtang, ruler of Haterk and all Upper Khachen, with great hopes built this holy cathedral on the place where my husband and sons rest in peace ... My first-born Asan martyred for his Christian faith in the war against the Turks, and, three years later, my younger son Grigor also joined Christ ... Completed in the year 663 of the Armenian calendar."
Dadivank Monastery was re-consecrated in 1994 and nowadays is on the list of acting monasteries of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Beginning from 1997, the Memorial Complex of Dadivank Monastery undergoes fundamental architectural restoration.
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Bas-relief on the entrance wall of the Memorial Cathedral depicting the rulers of Upper Khachen Click on picture to enlarge
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A fragment of Queen Arzou's inscription on the front wall of the Memorial Cathedral (1214) - Old Armenian - Click on picture to enlarge
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The khachkars of the Memorial Bell Tower - Dadivank Monastery - Click on picture to enlarge
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