By Adonia Agayan

“The renovations of the Tatev monastery, the pearl of the Armenian medieval architecture, are to be completed in 2013,” said Vanik Vardanyan, the Head of Tatev Revival project. According to him, the reconstruction will be launched in 2011.

The overall cost of Tatev Revival project amounts to $45 million, of which $20 million is allocated by the “Fund of Ruben and Veronica Vardanyans and their friends.”  The National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia is developing relevant programs to raise the rest of the sum.

Vardanyan also noted that about 16 miles of the road stretch leading to the monastery is also being restored. Half of the road will be laid with asphalt, and the other half will a be dirt road. These restoration works are planned to be completed in October.

Vardanyan said that the ropeway leading to Tatev monastery will be opened on October 16. It will meet international criteria as well as the strictest safety standards.

The cost of the ropeway amounts to $13 million. the highest point of the ropeway is about 1,080 feet, while its total length is about 3.5 miles. A one-way trip will take approximately 11.5 minutes.

Vardanyan noted that the tourist flow to Tatev is also expected to increase by three or five times. According to him, last year 5,000 foreign tourists visited the elusive monastery.

Tatev was a great cultural center that housed a scriptorium (a room set apart for writing or copying manuscripts), a library and one of the most popular medieval universities.

The Tatev Revival Project was initiated by the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia. The goal of the project is the restoration and the preservation of Tatev monastery and the development of the surrounding region by presenting it as a spiritual, scientific and cultural heritage. That will make the region a high-level tourist center. The project aims to renovate the monastery complex, tourism development and infrastructure improvement of seven neighboring villages as well as to construct the world’s longest reversible ropeway.

Per a decision made by the Armenian government in June, 2009, the Tatev tourist center includes the Tatev monastery complex and the villages Khot, Shinuhayr, Halidzor, Tatev, Svarants, Tandzatap and Khndzoresk.

Yerevan Report

Photo source: Tatev.org