S. SAVIOUR IN CHORA (KARIYE CAMI) MUSEUM INSTANBUL - TURKEY Parecclesion. Byzantine fresco representing St. Bacchus, one of the two protector saints of the Byzantine army. Possibly for this reason this image was severely damaged by the muslim invaders, and even more was damaged the nearby image of St. Sergius, whose face was almost totally erased. Picture shot by Giovanni Dall'Orto, May 29, 2006.

ARMENIAN MONASTERY OF ST. SARGIS, DIGOR NORTHEAST TURKEY This beautiful monastery, also known as "Beskilise" (Turkish for "Five Churches"), was spread out over three spurs of rock within a gorge about 25km south-west of Ani and a little to the west of the village of Digor (formerly called Tekor). The monastery had a total of five churches, all of them domed and carefully built out of finely cut stone. The churches were called: Saint Karapet, Saint Astucacin, Saint Stephanos, Saint Gregory, and Saint Sargis. Only the church of Saint Sargis is standing today. The monastery was abandoned after the Mongol invasions of the 13th century. In 1878, after the Russian conquest of the region, Khtzkonk was returned to the Armenian Church. The buildings were renovated and religious life resumed within the monastery. New accommodation was erected for monks and pilgrims - these were built along the edge of the main spur, beside the river in the gorge below, and also to the north-west of the Saint Sargis church. The monastery remained in use until 1920, when the remaining Armenian population of the Kars region was expelled by the Turks. After this, the area became a restricted military zone that was closed to visitors (as late as 1984 a special permit was needed to travel to Digor). When the monastery was next visited by historians, in 1959, only one church, Saint Sargis, remained standing - and it was seriously damaged. It was reported that villagers at that time said the churches had been blown up by Turkish soldiers. The inhabitants of nearby Digor still (2002) say the same thing. There is little doubt that the destruction was caused by explosives. Lumps of masonry from the destroyed churches have been flung far from their original positions. The slopes between the spurs are filled with shattered fragments of stonework, chunks of inscription covered wall, fragments of columns, and bits of ornate sculpture. The damage to the St. Sargis church is even more indicative - the side walls of the apses and chapels have been blown outwards, evidently by explosives placed within them. The location of a dated piece of modern graffiti (positioned so that it was lit by a window that is now destroyed) suggests that the destruction took place sometime after 1955. Saint Sargis was badly shaken during the December 1988 earthquake; the concrete core of the building was shattered and the church is now in a state of near collapse. Most of the photographs on these pages are from before the earthquake. Church of Saint Sargis "In the name of God, in the year 1214, I, Davit son of Grigor, general under the chief Zakaria, saw the splendour of the Holy monastery of Khtzkonk ... and I gave half the village of Vahanardzesh, which is in my possesion, to Surb Sargis church as a memorial to myself and my parents. Because of this, I, Hovhannes the abbot and vardapet, and the other brothers, have ordained that an annual liturgy should be celebrated by me in all the churches on the feasts of David, Hokob, Paughos and Petros, and the Holy Shoghakat without fail. If anyone opposes or obstructs this memorial, as much as God has blessed that man, may he be cursed." (Inscription on the north face of the Saint Sargis church) This was the largest church in the monastery, and it is the only one still standing. It has no inscriptions that mention the date or circumstances of its construction. However, according to the 12th century historian Samuel of Ani, it was commissioned in 1025 by a Prince Sargis. The earliest inscription on its walls is dated 1033. Another inscription, from 1211, records the liberation of the monastery from the hands of the Muslims. It is a domed, four-apsed, centrally-planned, church contained within a circular exterior. The dome rests on a drum supported on pendentives. This dome has an angular umbrella shaped roof - if this is also from 1025 then it is the earliest surviving example of this form of roof in an Armenian church.

TEKOR BASILICA OF SAINT SARKIS NORTHEAST TURKEY Tekor is located in Turkey, southwest of the ruined Armenian city of Ani. It is dated to the 5th century on the basis of archaeological evidence and its architectural style. There are also three inscriptions on the tympanum of the west portal that provide historical information on the Church. Preserved until 1911 when the cupola collapsed, Tekor was severely damaged by an earthquake in 1935. In 1964 (according to the Thierrys, 1965), all the facing stones had been removed from the site of the ruined Church. There was no evidence of their reuse on neighboring structures, as is often the case in Turkey. Tekor was originally a construction in basilical form with two pairs of cruciform pillars on the interior supporting cruciform vaults. According to Tíormanian, it was originally a pagan monument that had been converted into a Christian edifice. Shortly after its construction in the late 5th century, significant changes were made to the structure. A cupola was constructed over the enlarged square bay. A semicircular apse and two transversal chambers were built at the east end. The chambers projected to the north and south and abutted the portico. Floorplan The stone dome of Tekor was among the earliest to be constructed in Armenia, and until its destruction, Tekor was the oldest extant domed Church in Armenia (T'oramanyan). The dome was supported by enlarged free-standing pillars. The domeís early date is indicated by the fact that no pendentives or squinches were used to make the transition from the square bay to the circular drum of the cupola as in other Armenian Churches. Instead, four walls extended upward and inclined toward the center. Four slabs were placed diagonally on the corners of the pyramidal form at the base and top to make an octagon on which to rest the cupola. From the exterior the drum appeared to be a massive square crowned by a cornice. Above it was a narrow octagonal zone surmounted by the conical roof. The drum exterior is attributed to reconstruction work undertaken in the 10th century by the Bagratide as indicated in one of the inscriptions. The conical roof was umbrella-shaped. West wall - elevation and cross section There were two decorated portals on the north and one on the west elevation. The west portal had a horseshoe-shaped archivolt supported by two square pillars, each with four columns. Floral motifs on the capitals of the piers are similar to those in other Armenian basilicas (Kasal, 4th century and Ereroyk', 5th century) and in 6th century Syrian Churches (S. Serge of Dar Qita, and Churches at Kimar and Meez). Tekor had large windows with extended arches characteristic of 5th-7th century Armenian Churches. During reconstructions between the 10th and 12th century, many of these were narrowed and splayed in accordance with the style of the period. Red stone was used in earlier parts of the structure and yellow in later sections, offering evidence of changes. South wall - elevation and cross section Other indications of renovations include the ribbed, umbrella-like form of the pyramidal roof. The 10th century Churches of Xc'kawnk and Marmasen have somewhat similar coverings. Also, the lining of the pyramidal roof had preserved some tiles typical of roofs earlier than the 7th century. Subsequent restorations occurred in the course of the 11th to the 14th centuries.