The Monastery Of Haghpat
Situated southeast of Haghpat village, on the right bank of the River Dehed, the Monastery of Haghpat was one of the foremost spiritual and academic centers of medieval Armenia. The first sanctuary to be built in the monastic complex was the Church of the Sacred Sign, dedicated to the saving cross of Jesus Christ.
Queen Khosrovanush, wife of King Ashne the Merciful, authorized its construction in A.D. 976, and shepherded it to irs conclusion in 991; she initiated the project on behalf of her sons, the princes Smbat and Gyurige. An inscription on the church dome attests that Haghpat's first monk, Simeon, along with a priest named Tiranun, established a seminary at the monastery, which eventually enrolled a brotherhood of around 500, including clerical scholars, instructors, and students.
In 1996, the government of the Republic of Armenia restored the Haghpat monastic complex to the supervision of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.
