The ancient monastery of Hayravank is located on the high rocky shore of Lake Sevan. It looks very picturesque on the background of the blue waters of the lake. The church is surrounded by tombstones of the ancient cemetery and picturesque stones covered with red moss. These stones and the walls of the temple look most beautiful at sunset.
The ancient cross-domed chapel of St. Stephen in this place was built in the 9th century. At the same time, a cemetery appeared here. In the 13th century, the brothers monks Hovhannes and Nersis added a spacious neve to the chapel for worshippers. In this form, the monastery has survived to this day.
In the 13th century, it was called the "Monastery of Father Hovhannes" - Ayr Hovhannes Vank. Later, the name Hayravank was assigned to it, which literally means "Cave Monastery". This is due to the legend that it was connected by an underground passage with the Spitak-Berd fortress (White Fortress), which was located a kilometer from the monastery. Divine services in the monastery are still held today.
Take a walk around the monastery. To this day, only the main church has survived from the buildings of the monastery, but the stones and tombstones of the ancient cemetery are impressive. From the neighboring hill there is a beautiful view of the Hayravank Monastery on the background of Lake Sevan.
Hayravank Monastery is 500 meters from the M-10 road, which stretches along Lake Sevan. The monastery is not visible from the road, so many tourists do not visit it. Tourists often come only to the Sevanavank Monastery, which is located on the northwestern shore of Sevan. The most famous hotels and Beaches of Sevan are located there.
However, if you have a car, then you should drive along the coast 30 kilometers to the south to see the Hayravank Monastery. If you go further south into the mountains, then at the Selim pass you can see the Selim Caravanserai, built in the 14th century.
