Akhtala Monastery

Akhtala Vank, Pghindzavank
Ախթալայի վանք, Պղնձավանlք
Akhtala Vank, Pghindzavank ; Ախթալայի վանք, Պղնձավանlք
Religion
Affiliation	Armenian Apostolic Church
Location
Location	Lori Province, Armenia
	Shown within Armenia
Geographic coordinates	41°09′02″N 44°45′50″E / 41.150578°N 44.763919°E
Architecture
Type	Monastery, Church, Fortress
Style	Armenian
Completed	10th century.

Akhtala (Armenian: Ախթալայի վանք), also known as Pghindzavank (Armenian: Պղնձավանք, meaning Coppermine Monastery) is a 10th-century Armenian Apostolic monastery located in the town of Akhtala in the marz of Lori, 185 kilometers (115 mi) north of Yerevan and 87 kilometers south of Tbilisi . The monastery is currently inactive.^[1] The fortress played a major role in protecting the north-western regions of Armenia (Gugark) and is among the most well preserved of all in modern Armenia.^[2] The main church at the compound is famous for its highly artistic frescoes, which cover the inside walls, the partitions, and the bearings of the building. The frescoes of Akhtala Monastery, in Armenian-Chalcedonian style, were commissionned by the Zakarid ruler Ivane I Zakarian in 1205-1216.^[3]

The modern name of Akhtala was first recorded in a royal decree of 1438. The etymology of the name Akhtala is believed to be of Turkic origin, meaning white glade.^[4] The original Armenian name of the settlement where the monastery is built is Pghindzahank, which means copper mine.^[4]

^ Ashworth, Susie; Simone Egger; Campbell Mattinson (2004). Georgia Armenia & Azerbaijan (2nd ed.). Lonely Planet. p. 147. ISBN 1-74059-138-0.
^ Cite error: The named reference tacentral was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference AML was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b Tadevosyan, Aghasi (2007). Historical Monuments of Armenia: Akhtala. Yerevan, Armenia: "Var" Center for Cultural Initiatives. ISBN 978-99941-2-070-3.

[LP-1] Ashworth, Susie; Simone Egger; Campbell Mattinson (2004). Georgia Armenia & Azerbaijan (2nd ed.). Lonely Planet. p. 147. ISBN 1-74059-138-0.

[tacentral-2] Cite error: The named reference tacentral was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[AML-3] Cite error: The named reference AML was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Akhtala-4] Tadevosyan, Aghasi (2007). Historical Monuments of Armenia: Akhtala. Yerevan, Armenia: "Var" Center for Cultural Initiatives. ISBN 978-99941-2-070-3.

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