HAŁARTSIN / XIth-Xlllth centuries
The monastery which stands some twenty kilometers from the city of Dilijan takes its name from the torrent which flows in the narrow valley whose luxuriant vegetation is characteristic of the northern zone of the country above Lake Sevan. Set in splendid isolation in a perfectly preserved natural site this complex consists of three churches of domed hall type. Their diverse dimensions and close setting permits an interplay of volumes.
The oldest building is the church of St. Gregory (Xth or Xlllth century) preceded by a large gavit added at the end of the Xlllth century by the princes Zakare and Ivane. The expressive roughness of the reliefs sculptured at the four corners of the roof is remarkable. A small chapel (called the cathedral) linked with the church on the north side and having an apse hidden within the thickness of its wall is aligned with the church of St. Gregory.
Further to the north is the largest church dedicated to the Mother of God (Astvatsatsin) whose original construction dates from 1071. It was rebuilt in 1281. It was preceded by a large gavit of which only part of the north-west wall remains. A bas-relief in the interior represents the Virgin and Child between two angels. A magnificent Khach'k'ar stands next to the side entrance.
To the east stands the church of St. Stephen (Xllth-Xlllth centuries) which was once linked by a small colonnaded porch to the apse of the cathedral. The interior is particularly remarkable for its delicate ribbing and angle mouldings.
On the opposite side, a little to one side of the complex along the entrance avenue stands the long structure of the refectory built by the architect Minas in 1248.
This is the prototype of similar buildings such as the one at Hałbat. It is a large hall formed by the joining of two square rooms covered by four crossed arches with a small lantern in the center. Towards the actually destroyed kitchen we note the blunting of the exterior rib and the decreasing repetition of the stalactite motif.

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