Gavit

Gawit, also Gavit (Armenian Կավիտ ), usually refers to a square vestibule in the medieval Armenian architecture, which is attached to monastery churches in the West. The first typical Gawit with a phased in nine fields blanket belonged to the main church of the monastery Horomos and was dated 1038. The endemic in Armenia Gawit is greater than the church itself, in some cases, and served for general meetings of the church, for teaching purposes, court proceedings and as a burial place. The generally synonymous term Schamatun ( English transliteration Zhamatun ) for this building type is separately treated blurred and varies according to the function. He can only relate to the mundane function of space or specifically to the place of burial.

Development of design

The Armenian church architecture developed in parallel with the Georgian from the 4th century. First nave hall churches that were widened in the 5th century three-aisled basilicas and at the same time the first central buildings with first cross-shaped floor plans that were varied on the basis of a Tetrakonchos and expanded by side rooms. Emerged First, as in the small cross-domed church of Lmbat ( 7th century ) bear the inner wall corners, the central dome. In another design, the earliest representatives may be the construction of the Cathedral of Etchmiadzin beginning of the 7th century, the dome rests on four free-standing pillars, where the shear forces are derived by transverse arches to the outer walls. The Cathedral of Echmiadzin is a general change in the Armenian church. The basilica structures occur gradually in the background while cross-shaped central buildings are complemented by corner spaces that are within a sheath. An exemplary composition represented the now destroyed Theodoros Church of Bagaran ( Turkish western shore of Akhurian ) of 624-631, the four pillars with polygonal apses were free on each side in a square room.

The further development of the highly upwardly mobile two-storey Church of Bagaran culminated with the round Cathedral of Zvartnots ( 642-662 ), whose shape was repeated later in the Georgian Round Church Bana ( 900 ). While round churches or approximately round polygonal churches in Armenia occur frequently, they are in Georgia remained extremely rare. The Georgia widespread Byzantine building type of cross-domed church and the three church Basilica are unknown in Armenia. In Georgia, for it lacks the substance that results from the combination of a nave and central dome square dome and the Gawit.

With a partial autonomy of the Armenian principalities after the end of Abbasid rule began in the 9th century, a revival of Armenian architecture, which lasted until the mid 11th century. At that time arose with the development of monasticism, a building type that is peculiar to Armenian monasteries. The as a kind narthex grown from the west entrance of the church rectangular meeting room of the monks was initially covered with a barrel vault and probably had its origin in the region of Syunik, where remained such a simple vestibule before inaugurated in the year 1000 Stephanus church of the monastery Vorotnavank.

From the Gawit emerged as a square or approximately square central building with four free -standing pillars in the middle. One of the oldest Gawite from the year 996 is located in the monastery Gndevank ( province Wajoz Dzor ). An outstanding and the first characteristic example of this concept from the year 1038 belongs to the main church of St. John in Horomos (now a ruin site on the eastern border of Turkey). The four pillars of Gawits of Horomos carry a tent roof, which consists of eight monolithic slabs, at the head of an opening ( jerdik ) ensures light. The columns are connected in any direction with one another and with the outer walls by heavy arches that divide the space into nine segments. The eight outer fields are covered with flat plates containing rosettes and reliefs with other ornaments. The overall spatial composition establishes a connection with the palace architecture.

In the 13th and 14th centuries Gawite throughout Armenia became popular according to this model. Often they closed the monastery freestanding buildings together into a unified architectural ensemble. In contrast to vorarabischen time now joined not only the Katholokoi the occasion of her appointment to this position as the founder of churches and monasteries, kings and princes wanted to increase their prestige by generous foundations and thus contributed to the growing number of religious buildings. For existing churches Gawite were grown at this time, in new church buildings were included in the same architecture. In some churches they surpass in size the main building. In the case of the monastery Barjrakash (early 13th century, in the valley of the river Debed at Georgian Place Marneuli ) shrank the layer nearest to the Gawit church to a small apse.

The center ceiling panel is surmounted usually by a dome, without drum or otherwise increased. The transition from the ground to the dome square circle is first achieved by pendentives or squinches or other pendentives on an octagon, sometimes via an intermediate stage with 12 or 16 pages. Instead of the dome, a groin vault, a pyramid or a small tower construction make the top end. In many cases, a square or circular light opening ( jerdik ) is available. The central opening in the ceiling refers to the ancient Armenian type of dwelling glkhatun ( " head house" ), the in the 5th century BC Greek historian Xenophon described the already and was built until the 19th century. The roof of this house type consisted of square diagonally across the corners of the room wooden beams, which tapers upwards a corbelled ( hazarashen ) formed, with the ground covered in an artificial hill was round the outside. Since the 14th century, ceiling constructions were possible without free-standing pillars. In this case support two massive pilasters on each side of the wall wide, the entire space spanning arcs that intersect and also form nine fields of space.

The nine -field ground-plan has a parallel in -built in the Abbasid mosques. The Gawite in the 13th century allowed in contrast to the strict building tradition of the church buildings following an innovative design and an increase in the uptake of adjacent formal languages ​​. ( Destroyed ruins of the earthquake in 1988 and later improperly partly restored ) When Gavit of Astvatsankal from the 13th century in the province Aragazotn the gusset of muqarnas vaults were covered by Seljuk model. The acquisition of muqarnas from the Islamic architectural tradition is also found in contemporary Hagia Sophia in Trebizond and occasionally elsewhere in the Armenian architecture.

Classification

The classification of Gawite carried out according to the ceiling structure on pillars or on the last-mentioned rib construction. Jean -Michel Thierry calls in its first classification of the most common type A1, which follows the model of Horomos: Arches lead from the square of the four free- standing columns on pilasters. Four of the nine ceilings segments are lying in the axis intersection closed by barrel vaults and the corner squares by flat domes or flat ceilings. From the entrance in the west wall, the path leads east into the church. Some Gawite of this type have grown chapels at the corners or on an upper floor. Examples are the monastery Sanahin with a Gawit of 1181, Goshavank in the province of Tavush ( 1197 ), Makaravank in the same province ( 1207 ), Saghmosavank (shortly after 1215) in the province Aragazotn, Haritschawank in the province of Shirak in the Northwest ( 1225 ) and Howhannawank northwest of Yerevan (1250 ). From the 16th to the 18th century, the type A1 is indeed still present, in the region Vaspurakan ( in today's Eastern Turkey ) but is missing almost all of the relief decoration. Gawite at this time were, among others, in Apostelnkloster in Muş ( 1555), in Varagavank ( 1648), Lim ( 1766, today the island Adir Adası in Lake Van ) and Narek (1787, Ararat province ) was built.

The rare type A2 has only two free-standing pillars, of which the transverse arches lead to the outer walls. The dome is here arranged asymmetrically. One example is the Gawit the monastery Hayrawank on the west bank of the Lake Sevan from the 12th century, which was attached to a church by the end of the 9th century. Later, the two pillars still occur in Putkuvank (1601, Haneputki, Eastern Turkey ).

The widespread costal arch ceiling forms the type B1. These include the Monastery Khorakert northwest of Sanahin with a Gawit of 1252 Arakelotswank in the extreme northeast (13th century) and Deljnutivank ( 13th century). At a special form in Horomayri Monastery ( Lori province, 13th century ) and the Apostle Church in Ani (probably early 11th century ) the ribs diagonally in the room. When the Apostle Church, a small Gawit was attached to a church whose basic shape represented the transition from a Tetrakonchos to a cross-domed church. In Arates ( province Wajoz Dzor ) the ceiling as a special intercostal possessed.

Type C is a reduced, asymmetrical shape with only two free -standing pillars near the west wall. It comes in the monasteries Haghpat in the north ( beginning 13th century), Mschkawank ( Tavush province ) and Ganjasar ( in the East, 13th century) ago.

For type D include Gawite, who have neither central pillar nor a ribbed design, but a groin vault. Such Gawit from the year 1261 can be found in Noravank in the valley of Amaghu and Calackar monastery with the church of St. Karapet dated 1014. A shallow dome ( dome ) arches over the Gawit of Hogeacvank.

Long Rectangular buildings are grouped together as type e. These include single-aisled halls (type E1) that existed at an early time in the southern province of Syunik, two-span (type E2) and three-aisled spaces (type E3) as in Sanahin of 1211. E4 type denotes an open gallery with wide arcades ago the west portal, which occurs similarly in the Georgian architecture. Examples are the monastery Kobayr in the province of Lori in the 12th century and the monastery Sedvivank; in the 17th century: Mughni ( province Aragazotn ) Zoravar ( Kotayk province ), Shativank ( province Wajoz Dzor ), Have (a village in the west Ordubad Rayon of Azerbaijan ) and Paraga ( in Nakhichevan ).

Function

After the Seljuk raids in the 11th century, the Georgian King Dawit the builder conquered in the early 12th century the north of Armenia and the country received a share in the economic prosperity of Georgia. Until the 14th century the monasteries played a significant role in the development of architecture and enlarged their estates, because they lack the feudal lords gave their possession. The now built Gawite were the burial places of this princely families. After the Armenian church law they were not allowed to be buried in the church itself.

The function as a place of jurisdiction and the promulgation of laws is occupied in Gawit the destroyed Church of the Apostles Ani by inscriptions on the walls. A partially similar task had the Westwerk a European church. Gavite also served as a school room and library for the Convention. Then have numerous niches out in the walls, in which books have been turned off.

Gawite contributed their style similar to the palaces architecture helps to create a cohesive complex of buildings, which blend harmoniously into the landscape.