//
Photo: Yerevantsi, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The Saghmosavank is a 13th-century Armenian monastic complex located in the village of Saghmosavan in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. Like the Hovhannavank monastery which is five kilometers south, Saghmosavank is situated atop the precipitous gorge carved by the Kasagh river. Their silhouettes dominate the adjacent villages and rise sharp against the background of the mountains crowned by Mount Aragats.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Saint Marianeh Church
S. Mariane was built in 1271 or according to some sources 1281. It has a beautiful umbrella dome that rests above.
Surb Astvatsatsin
The church was built in the mid-7th century and has been preserved without significant alterations. It features a single reddish clay tile domed roof (hence the name Tsiranavor, which means "reddish"). There are ancient khachkars around the church, and a stone gates with preserved engravings. It is a small church but quite interesting.
The reddish stone arch bridge was built in 1664 as part of the old road to Yerevan. It features two equal sized smaller pointed arches on either side of a larger central pointed arch.
Perch Proshyan, the writer of the second half of the 19th century, was born here. There is a funny milepost at the entrance showing distances to the Hermitage, the Louvre and other world-famous museums.
Saint Sarkis Church of Ashtarak
S. Sarkis was built in the 19th century supposedly upon older foundations. It looks to be a new church because of extensive restoration work, but a small number of the older original stones carved with decorative relief and inscriptions (replaced with new stone and now sitting next to the foundation of the building) show its age to be much older. It offers a fine view to the three churches of Tsiranavor, Spitakavor, and Karmravor.
Tsiranavor meaning "apricotish" is a small church built between the 13th to 14th centuries. Its roof has since collapsed, but walls remain. It also doesn't look very appealing and can be skipped.