The Tatev Monastery is a 9th-century monastery located on a large basalt plateau near the Tatev village in Syunik Province in southeastern Armenia. The monastic ensemble stands on the edge of a deep gorge of the Vorotan River. Tatev is known as the bishopric seat of Syunik and played a significant role in the history of the region as a center of economic, political, spiritual and cultural activity. In 1995, the monasteries of Tatev, Tatevi Anapat and their adjacent areas of the Vorotan Valley were added to the tentative list of World Heritage Sites of UNESCO.
I have to thank Hovsep for this awesome card sent from Yerevan with a nice matching stamp. The stamp is actually the joint issue "Europa 2012- Visit Armenia" , which depicts the Tatev Monastery and the "Wings of Tatev", a cableway from Tatev to Halidzor village. The cableway was launched in 2010 as part of the effort of Armenian government to revive tourism in the area and was included in the Guinness World Records as world's "longest non-stop double track cable car."
The
Geghard complex is an exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a
medieval Armenian monastic foundation in a remote area of great natural beauty
at the head of the Azat valley, surrounded by towering cliffs. It contains a
number of churches and tombs, most of them cut into the rock, which illustrate
the very peak of Armenian medieval architecture and decorative art, with many
innovatory features that had a profound influence on subsequent developments in
the region. It was founded in the 4th century, according to tradition by St Gregory the Illuminator, who is the patron saint and first official head of the
Armenian Apostolic Church. He was a religious leader who is credited with
converting Armenia from paganism to Christianity in 301. Armenia thus became
the first nation to adopt Christianity as its official religion. The monastery
and spectacular towering cliffs surrounding it which are part of the Azat river
gorge, are included together in the UNESCO World Heritage Site listing “Monastery of Geghard and the Upper Azat Valley”.
