ՏՈՂԻ ՍԲ. ՀՈՎՀԱՆՆԵՍ ԵԿԵՂԵՑՈՒ ՀՆԱԳԻՏԱԿԱՆ ՀԵՏԱԶՈՏՈՒԹՅԱՆ ՀԻՄՆԱԿԱՆ ԱՐԴՅՈՒՆՔՆԵՐԸ / THE MAIN RESULTS OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF ST. HOVHANNES (ST. JOHN) CHURCH IN TOGH

Abstract

St. Hovhannes (St. John) Church under study is located in the centre of Togh, Hadrut region, the Republic of Artsakh, about 50 meters southwest of the palace of Melik Yegan, on a sloping site. The church is quite well preserved. It repeats the three-nave basilica type common in Syunik and some regions of Armenia in the Late Middle Ages. The exact date of construction of the church is unknown. According to the inscription on the pedestal of the cross, the roof was restored by Melik Yegan in 1736 by the order of the Catholicos of Aghuank (Caucasian Albania) Petros. Next to the church on the south side is a walled courtyard measuring 17.0 x 22.0 meters. Historical sources contain information that there was a chapel in the courtyard next to the church, which served as a tomb for the Melik-Yeganyans of Dizak. In 2017, excavations were carried out in the northern and southern courtyards of the church in order to verify this information, as well as to study the surroundings of the church. This report presents the main results of the 2017 archaeological survey of the church. As a result of excavations and cleaning of the area, the remains of two buildings, as well as more than 80 tombstones from the northern and southern graveyards, some of which with relief carvings and inscriptions, were recorded. The latter are introduced into scientific use for the first time.