A Forgotten Monastery

Armenia may boast many medieval churches testifying to its rich Christian heritage but not all of them are known to the public. Few Armenians have ever visited or even heard of the Surp Karapet (St. John the Baptist) monastery tucked away in the Urtsasar mountains overlooking the Ararat Valley. Built in the early 14th century, the monastic complex is notable for its relatively well-preserved main church and a graveyard with hundreds of tombstones with fine ornamentations. (A photo story by Karen Minasyan.)