Goshavank Monastery

Goshavank rises on a terrace above the rooftops of Gosh, a farming village at the eastern edge of the national park. The monastery was founded in 1188 by Mkhitar Gosh — scholar, fabulist and author of Armenia's first law code — after an earthquake destroyed his previous monastery nearby, and it grew into one of the great centres of learning of medieval Armenia, with a school, library and scriptorium.

The buildings are compact and beautifully proportioned: the main church of St Astvatsatsin, a gavit, the smaller St Gregory churches, the two-storey book depository with its bell tower. The treasure is a khachkar carved in 1291 by the master Poghos, so intricate it is often called "embroidered" or "lace" stone; one of the pair stands here, the other is in Yerevan's history museum. Unlike Haghartsin, Goshavank is rarely crowded, and the village setting — cows, orchards, woodsmoke — is part of the pleasure.