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Turning
from the main road toward Talin, the 2nd or 3rd right
turn, bypassing 19th c. church
and modern khachkars, leads to a large medieval
through modern cemetery in which are the impressive remains of an
important Cathedral church
of the 5-6th c. very similar to the 7th c. church at
Aruch. Nearby is a smaller
S. Astvatsatsin
church, built in the
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Turning
left in the main square of Talin
and continuing S leads to Dashtadem
(formerly Nerkin/Lower Talin). A few hundred meters after the
electric substation, on the left rise the ruined stone walls of
a large medieval
caravansaray. W of the road on a hill are remains of Stone
Age obsidian workshops. In
the middle of the village of Dashtadem, a
left turn leads
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7th
c., occupied by Early
Christian period stone stelas,
foundations of the 5th c. basilica
church. Somewhere in the
vicinity are caves.
N from the churches, above a hill are remnants of an Iron
Age fortification walls, with traces of a settlement and tombs.
In the nearby gorge are remains of the Early
medieval period dam. Right from the road to Areg is
the Khacher
shrine with early khachkars among of which is the
famous circular khachkar of the 9-10th c.
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almost
immediately to the arched
gateway
of the fortress. Most
of the outer circuit wall dates to the last Qajar khans of
Yerevan, at the beginning of the 19th
c. However,
the fortress is considerably earlier. The
keep within is a bizarre structure, with half-round towers glued
onto an earlier Armenian fortress probably of the 10th
c. Beneath the citadel are substantial cisterns. There
is also a chapel
of S. Sargis beside it, dated to the 10th
c. Continuing
through
Dashtadem,
and
descending toward the
S, a spur road climbs left to the
restored 7th
c. Kristapori
Vank.
The area between the monastery and fortress is occupied by a
huge settlement
of the Bronze Age through medieval periods, with traces of civil
and cult buildings, different
constructions, tomb fields and graveyards,
khachkars and cave complexes. |
