Holy Cross Church also referred to as Kasagh Basilica is in the town of Aparan, Aragatsotn Province. The church dates to the fourth or fifth century and was restored in 1877, as well as having evidence of more recent renovation. The basilica sits on a two-step platform, so is like Yereruyk and Zvartnots in being placed on a raised base and there is a ruined apsed structure of unclear date to the north of the building suggesting that it may have been linked to a possible side chapel in the past. The apse is a protruding polygonal structure, which is relatively unusual in early South Caucasian basilicas, which appear to most frequently terminate in a flat east end. The decoration above the windows on the south side and also in the apse is of the linear type seen at Yereruyk and also above the south entrance of the church at Tsilkani in Georgia. This Armenian variant is in some ways close to Syrian decorative motifs found on the northwest Limestone Massif, but deviates by only being present directly above and to the side of the windows, whereas in Syria they usually follow in a ribbon along the entire church exterior - see for example the entries on this site for Qalb Lozeh and Qal'at Sem'an.
Creator
Emma Loosley
Date of Visit
14th August 2017
Contributor
Emma Loosley
Peter Leeming
Rights
Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons
unless otherwise indicated
Type
Architecture
Tags
Aparan, Architecture, Armenia, Basilica, C4th-C5th, Qalat Seman, Qalb Lozeh, Yereruyk, Zvartnots
Collection
Comparative Armenian Ecclesiastical Monuments
Citation
Emma Loosley, “Holy Cross, Aparan,” Architecture and Asceticism, accessed November 23, 2024, https://architectureandasceticism.exeter.ac.uk/items/show/851.