MARMACHEN MONASTERY

Near Gumri, in the northeast, you can visit the monastery of Marmachén, founded between 986 and 1029 by Prince Vahram Pahlavouni. The ensemble, composed of three churches whose architecture falls within Ani's school, stands on a plateau dominating the gorges of the river Akhourian. The main church is particularly elegant with its facades with fine arcatures, and its dome with several pairs of columns and topped with a umbrella roof. She has her reply as a small model, half ruined even before the earthquake. The third church, for its part, is more restrained in its design as in its ornamentation.