Temple of Garni

The country in which so many inimitable medieval churches and monasteries, often very easy to pass over that some of the most emphatic architectural treasures of Armenia were built before the admission of Christianity. And Thereby it is needfull to note, most notably the conservation of these structures to the nowadays is particularly noteworthy for the sequent reasons.

First of all, there antiquity worked against them because Armenia is in a seismic zone, and in the presence of warm summers and cold winters, over the centuries nature has done its job, inexorably destroying ancient relics.

Moreover, after the adoption of Christianity by country and the starting of active process of construction of the churches, gradually erased the traces of ancient worship.

And as already noted, under these conditions even more notable the importance of maintaining a pagan sanctuary of Garni.

It is a unique monument of the kind of the Hellenistic period, which stored on the territory of Armenia, located about 28 km from Yerevan.

The temple was erected by the order of Tiridates I in the first centenary AD and likely was dedicated to the sun god. After the adoption of Christianity the temple was not demolished, and was used as a military base, and the summer residence of the governor. But in 1679 the building was destroyed by a strong earthquake and most of the parts have not been preserved in its original state, but in the middle of the twentieth century, the restoration took place and the structure has been restored totally .

Today, the temple is surrounded by the ruins of the royal palace, the ancient fortress and some other facilities. Very interesting are the royal baths with well preserved heating system. The interior flooring baths decorated with mosaics.

Overlapping of the temple supported by 24 columns of Ionic configuration. Unlike other similar structures of Greco-Roman culture, Garni has a basalt base.

The ancient ancestors of the Armenians organized their life in concordance with the laws of nature, carefully studied the seasonal ebb and flow, which identified and supported their fate. Predictions of the spring thaw and summer rain was seen more like magic, and the control elements of nature equated to intercourse with the gods, because of their anger could send the floods, droughts and epidemics at the people.

Garni Temple is just a demonstration of the deep faith that is manifested in its design and geometric forms.

Its sacred geometry mattered almost communication with the gods.

Garni temple complex located in the province of Kotaik, near the small village of the same name. The road leading there departs from the main highway, and we can say that in excellent condition and so you can get to the place in just one hour. It is reasonable to book the excursion through the travel agencies in the capital or in hotels, which often also includes the visit of nearby monastery Geghard.