Video Close  
  Svenska
 
  Monuments
Church/Monastery :: Goshavank  
 
Goshavank Monastery

 
Information
 
The Gosh monastery, formerly known as Nor Getik, is situated near the village of Gosh, on the eastern slope of the wooden valley of the Tand-zout, 23 km from the chief town of the region, Dilidjan. The monastery complex was founded in 1181, on the day its first church, dedicated to St Grigor Lousavoritch (the Illuminator), was inaugurated by the famous monk and legislator Mkhitar Gosh. The second church, in order of time, was the church of S. Karapet Hovnan. All that remains of these two buildings are the historical accounts of them written by Kirakos of Gandzak, a disciple of Mkhitar Gosh. The monastery complex, erected over a 116-year period, comprises the main church of St Astvatzatzin (1191-96), the smaller church of St Grigor (1209-31), the zhamatoun (1197), an ante-chapel used exclusively for burial purposes, the library (1291), the church of St Grigor Lousavoritch, built by Prince Grigor Tgha in 1231, and the refectory.

The location plan and layout of the Gosh monastery complex worked on two principles, one static, the other dynamic. The former, established by the Church and, therefore, irrevocable, laid down the axis and the orientation of the main church and of the zhamatoun backing on to its western side, within the general composition. As a result of this, the lesser buildings in the complex were erected around the zhamatoun to form a symmetrical whole. To the south of the zhamatoun and connected to it by a barrel-vaulted passageway, is the library. Adjacent to the western wall of the library are the rough-hewn stone walls of the rectangular, now roofless building that was once the refectory. It is backing on to the southern side of the zhamatoun that we find the small, exquisite church of S. Grigor Lousavoritch. A little farther to the east, in line with the eastern wall of the zhamatoun and erected against its southern wall, are two chapels. A short way south of the church of St Astvatzatzin is the church of St Grigor.

Where the land is flat, the angular interplay caused by intersection of main and diagonal axes is eliminated. With the typically rectangular domed halls of the 6th and 7th centuries, the church takes on a decidedly cruciform ground plan, marked at the centre by the two deep quadrangular niches supporting the dome. As for the exterior aspect of the church of St Astvatzatzin, its facades are scored by triangular niches in the east and south sides. The main entrance gives onto the zhamatoun, and there is a second entrance from a passage in the north side.

The smaller church of St Grigor is situated nearby, to the south of the main church. It too takes the form of a domed hall, with triangular niches running the length of the facade, except for the western side. The zhamatoun in front of the church has a centralized structure; the entire volume is defined by the large octagonal dome in the centre of the hall, which rests on four massive monolithic columns and four barrel vaults which radiate out from the centre to give the roof its cruciform shape. The angular western areas have a lower slabbed ceiling supported by stone cross-beams, while those to the east, where there are two chapels giving on to the zhamatoun, have small barrel vaults. These elements are complementary to the primary structures, and the structural problems encountered are resolved here with a certain freedom of choice - but even here, the precise geometrical criteria governing the overall architectural scheme are implemented. To the south of the zhamatoun and slightly detached from it there is a small and very elegant church dedicated to St Grigor Lousavoritch (1231). The rather severe ornamental lines decorating the exterior, far from compromising the form, introduce an element of plasticity and highly original vitality.

From the outside, the church looks like a parallelepiped raised on a terraced base and covered by a double sloping roof, with a succession of blind arcades encircling the entire structure. Slender columns divide the otherwise uninterrupted facades of the little church into architectural units. The eastern facade is embellished by a double mullioned window with a triangular niche on either side of it, and two smaller windows which correspond to the side chapels. Also framed by the arcades are the highly decorative western portal and the little windows in its upper reaches.
Inside, the apsed nave to the east is divided into two bays. The barrel vault in hewn sandstone is thrust lightly upwards on two polystyle pillars next to the walls, and supported in the centre by a fine rib. The pillars are crowned by carved capitals which rest on bases completely detached from the floor; the bases in their turn are supported by narrower dados.

The walls, which terminate in the horizontal cornice of the vault and depart from a continuous ledge, are vertically divided into large squares. The raised altar is housed in the apse, which is formed by five exquisite intarsiad niches and flanked by two smaller apsidal areas giving on to the hall. All interior and exterior cornices are edged with moulding, which is semi-circular in section, coves and listels, and finished with a cyma. The unusual refinement of both architectural and decorative elements lends a very special vigorous plasticity to the rigorous geometricallity of the whole.

To the north of the zhamatoun rises the library, a two-story building with domed clerestory (now destroyed), where the bells were housed. The square ground floor is covered with a double crossed-arch structure which supports the dome and rests on four pairs of pillars designed as interior extensions of the outside walls: the arches divide the space into a central cruciform hall with barrel-vaulted wings, and four smaller corner zones with spherical domes formed of stalactite-shaped, faceted quoins. The east and west walls feature deep-vaulted lateral extensions, while the double mullioned windows opening from the three facades and the eyelike opening in the centre of the dome ensure adequate natural lighting for the building, which is used for storing manuscripts. On the ground floor, it communicates with the zhamatoun through a covered passage, while a projecting outside stairway on the northern wall leads to the upper floor.

Amongst the double-storey buildings with exterior stairways, the chapel-mausoleum of the Orbelian family is worthy of mention. This building is situated in the convent of Noravank (1339) at Amaghou, and is the work of the architect Momik. Even for the type of building with more than one storey, this library is something of a curiosity, as regards its architectural and spatial characteristics; the form was used in the Early Middle Ages in Armenian buildings constructed for complex functions. At Goshavank, the layout of the interior of the library is that of a cross within a square, with a second, less rigid cross superimposed on the first, made up of the intersection of two barrel vaults and covered externally by the double sloping roofs; the octagonal pier of the dome, open in the centre towards the peripheral clerestory, meets the intersection of the two vaults. The eastern wing of the upper storey is divided by a wall to produce two chapels. The construction date, 1291, is to be seen on the wall together with the names of the architects Zakios and Grigor, responsible for completion of the work started by Mkhitar, who designed all the more important buildings of the Gosh monastery complex.

The library has a central cruciform hall developed over two stories; of these, the first has a structure with crossed arches and dome, with a clerestory on top in the centre. The geometrical problem which arises when passing from the cubic base to the cruciform upper storey is resolved by a central cruciform nucleus, formed by the crossing of the supporting arches of the external walls of the upper storey, within the limits of the four pairs of base pillars, thus giving rise to two complementary and united structures connected by the nucleus. As far as the outside aspect is concerned, there is one chief factor which distinguishes the library from the other buildings in the complex: the entire structure rests on a high base made up of rough-hewn; irregular-shaped ashlars, which create a chiaroscuro effect. This foundation surrounds the building on three sides, extending to the west and north to outline the rectangular shape of the refectory, and meeting at the defensive walls (now in ruins) uphill from the monastery. The upper part of the ground floor is decidedly detached from the stone base, a pure volume complemented and completed by the volume - cruciform in plan - of the upper storey; the plastic values of the upper storey are in marked contrast with the rigorous treatment of the lower storey, and this produces the idea of a sort of organic growth of the building, an effect which is accentuated by the increase in the size of the openings in the upper reaches, emphasizing the "window effect" which becomes greater towards the top. On the other hand, to stress the symbolic message of the vertical axis, natural light enters predominantly from the top of the domes and clerestory to light the ground floor of the library: here the light is received and reflected from the concave surfaces of the dome and crossed support arches, and is distributed with declining intensity on the prismatic surfaces of the stalactite-like roofs of the corner halls. These structures, locked within elementary volumes, are expressive of the absolute values of modeled harmony, characteristic of Armenian medieval thought, in which every formal endeavor is typically led back to the intrinsic laws behind it.

Structurally, the contrast between interior and exterior is only apparent. It arises from the different relationship between form and elements (arches, vaults) connected by thorough-going stereotomy, by which elements of the interior space are organized and married to exterior volume, thus integrating two complementary aspects of the architecture into a single formal structure.

The outside walls are the bounding surfaces of an interior articulation which is just hinted at by the characteristic triangular niches which are, in our case, expressive elements that stress the cohesion of the various parts. The mastery displayed in these volumetric structures, both simple and grandiose at the same time, indicates the flowering of a new cultural sensitivity promoted by the exceptional personality of Mkhitar Gosh. The nature of this architecture points to the existence of a local school of art probably founded by the architect Mkhitar and his apprentices, and then carried on by Zakios, Grigor, the brothers Khatchatour and Barsegh, and the sculptor Poghos, responsible for the very fine khatchkar at either side of the entrance to the church of S. Grigor Lousavoritch. The closed systems of the domed hall and zhamatoun doubtless lead to a certain rigidity in the handling of space, but this rigidity is overcome by the continuous embellishment of architectural details, decoration, structural finesse, and the overall plan itself.

The tiny chapel of St Gevork, situated on the slopes across the valley from the monastery complex, was built in 1254 by the varpets (%93masters%94) Khatchatour and Barsegh; it is square in shape, with an inner apse and two adjacent side halls. A cylindrical drum and dome covered by a conical cusp surmount it.

To the east of the chapel of St Gevork, on a hill, is the funeral chapel of Mkhitar Gosh. At its southern wall there is a khatchkar, and a second khatchkar is located at the chapel of St Hogi (%93Spirit%94). Numerous others are scattered along the margins of the paths through the woods which lead to the monastery; they bear witness to profound devotion, and loving attachment to the holy place.

The village near the monastery (now called Gosh), as well as the other rural hamlets situated nearby, was once part of an economic and administrative system governed by the monastery, and some of the minor monastery buildings stood on village territory.

Text by Armen Zarian
Ads