Probably the most important structure in Karabakh, the Gandzasar Monastery signifies the millennia-old Armenian presence in Karabakh to locals. Dating from the 5th century, the monastery is centred on the church of Surp Hovhannes Mkrtich (St John the Baptist), which has exceptional carved friezes around its central drum. There are well-preserved inscriptions and khachkars (carved stone crosses) in the church’s antechamber, which is filled with the floor-slab tombs of former bishops and nobles of the region.
