In Turkey, thieves destroyed the historical Armenian monastery Hogvots (Hogheats, Hogots) on the banks of the Araks, between the Gürpınar (Hayots Dzor) and Chatak districts of Van. The once standing monastery is now on the verge of destruction. Ali Kalchik, one of the leaders of the Van ÇEVDER Historical Monuments Protection Union, announced this Ermenihaber reports.
“This is simply atrocities. Even without that, it is now almost impossible to enter a shrine that has been used as a barn for years because of the manure there,” said Kalchik, noting that dozens of such historic sites have been destroyed in Turkey. He called on the people, states, non-governmental organizations to finally break the silence and say “no” to the destruction of the world heritage.
Hogots monastery was one of the few notable monasteries of Historical Armenia's Antzevasiq district, which was a part of larger province of Vaspurakan. Similar to Surb Bardughmeosi vank, Hogots monastery was a pilgrimage site for Armenians from the Van region. In the seventeenth century, it became the main religious building of the Norduz district of the Vilayet of Van in the Ottoman Empire. The priest Vahan was the last of the known priests of the monastery preceding the Armenian genocide during 1915. It is believed that almost a hundred Armenian women and children in the monastery were burned to death when they tried to lock themselves inside during the genocide.
The monastery was rebuilt in 1730-65, destroyed in 1895, renovated in 1904, and abandoned in 1915.
