Tabatsghuri – Surb Karapet (Saint Karapet) church

The church was established in the first half of the 19th century.

Establishment of the church: The exact date of the foundation of Surb Karapet (Saint Karapet) church in the village of Tabatsghuri (30 km north-east of Akhalkalaki) is not known. In 1884, the church was mentioned as a structure built of stone and covered with wood [1]. It was probably built in the 70s of the 19th century. Like the churches in other villages of the province, Surb Karapet church was severely damaged by the earthquake on December 19, 1899 [2]. It is currently standing.

Other churches: 2.5 km north of the village there are half-ruined churches built of hewn stone, single-ship typed which date back to the 13th-14th century [3].

Architecture: The church is hall-typed. The external dimensions are 16.16×9.10 m. The entrance is from the western side. There is an Armenian inscription at the lintel of the entrance. The content of the inscription is: «ՍՈՒՐԲ ԿԱՐԱՊԵՏ ԵԿԵՂԵՑԻ | ՎԵՐԱԿԱՌՈՒՑՎԵՑ 2007 | ԲԱՐԵՐԱՐ | ՎԱՐԴԱՆ ԱՅՎԱԶՅԱՆ» (''SAINT KARAPET CHURCH | RECONSTRUCTED 2007 | BENEFICIARY | VARDAN AYVAZYAN''). The interior walls are plastered and painted.

School: The works directed to the opening of the village school began in 1912. The initiative belonged to teacher Arshak Grigoryan and priest Arshak Ter-Galstyan [4]. Construction was completed in 1913 [5].

The church in the Soviet and Post-Soviet period: During the Soviet era, particularly in the 1930s, the church was closed and turned into a warehouse. In the Post-Soviet period, the church was cleaned and improved by the efforts of the villagers. Later, with the financial support of the benefactors, the church was renovated, and in 2007 it was consecrated by the local pastor.

Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Georgia

Armenian Historical and Cultural Heritage Research Center in Georgia

[1] ''Ardzaganq'', 1885, N 3, p. 43:

[2] S. Karapetyan, Javaketi, Yerevan, 2006, p. 490:

[3] S. Karapetyan, in the same place, p. 492:

[4] ''Horizon'' 1912, N 190, p. 3:

[5] ''Horizon'', 1913, N 187, p. 3: