A MONUMENT OF THE MEDIEVAL ARMENIAN ARCHITECTURE. CHURCH IN THE DOWN FORTRESS (AGHJKABERD) OF ANI
This is the authors' second article highlighted the results of the study on the architectural monument that has not been properly studied so far - the church in the Inner Fortress of the capital of the Medieval Armenia, Ani. The article discusses the features of the plan and plastic decor of the church's facades in more detail; for the first time attention is paid to the richness of the drum's plasticity. The essay also seeks to specify the place of this building in the development of architecture and ornamental art of the Medieval Armenia while tracing back the origins of the architectural type of cruciform churches with rooms in the four corners, which formed the basis of the composition of the Ani church; the spectrum of buildings of the 12th-13th centuries, in which the variations of this type are evident, are spoken about in the text as well. In the analysis of the church's exterior special attention is paid to the blind arcade on the paired columns on the western and southern façades and window decoration of the building. It has been noticed that the master of the Aghjkaberd church designed the ornament from vegetative motives artistically, and the carving in some places resembles sculpture. For the first time the relief crosses and decorative forms in the interior of the church are thoroughly analyzed, as are some carved elements in the rubble; they allow us to evaluate the variety of forms on this small monument of the medieval architecture. The authors have come to the conclusion that the architect who worked on the newly minted city ruler's orders was an outstanding master who denied a mechanistic approach to work. This is primarily manifested in his decision to "spare" the blind arcade on the northern and eastern facades, because they can be properly seen only from afar. The article uses the results of observations and measurements made during a recent visit to the site at the end of May 2019. These materials, that have not yet been published, enable an entire reconstruction of the church, including the dome, be made; it will become the basis for the next article on this monument in Aghjkaberd. The present study promote the notion that this small church, which was previously considered apart from the main works of the medieval Armenian architecture, is in fact one of the key monuments of the period of the national architectural tradition revival commenced at the turn of the 12th-13th centuries. The Aghjkaberd church was one of the first ecclesiastical buildings erected by Zakare, the ruler of the central provinces of Armenia. With it, a new image of an Armenian monastic church in its most solemn form was forging here; the image, which, on the one hand reflected the interpretations of the architectural forms of the Bagratids' era and, in particular, the Ani Cathedral, and on the other hand, demonstrated new opportunities for the façades' decoration.