EXPLORING KARS
During the Middle Ages it belonged to the Kingdom of Armenia, and in the 10th century it became its capital, before it was transferred to Ani. In the 11th century, Kars became part of the Byzantine Empire, after which it changed hands: Seljuk Turks, Armenians, Georgians, Safavids, Ottomans and Russians. Until the Treaty of Kars of 1921, signed between Turkey and Russia, the city was definitely within the borders of Turkey.
Kars Castle: built by the Kingdom of Armenia in the 12th century from where you can take pictures of the river with the historic bridge in the background.
The church of the Twelve Apostles from the 10th century was later converted by the Ottomans into the Kumbet Mosque. It is an elegant building, a typical structure of Armenian churches with the reliefs of 12 apostles adorning the exterior.
Soviet buildings; in 1878 Kars became part of Russia for 40 years. The Fethiye Mosque, the Estate Directory and the Governor's Mansion are best examples of this Baltic-style architecture.
Kars local products; In its streets there are many cheese and honey shops, two very typical products of the area. Kars goose dried meat is well known throughout Turkey.
Kars Museum where Ani's pieces are exhibited.
ANI, THE CAPITAL OF THE ARMENIAN KINGDOM
Like many others in Anatolia, Ani is located in a region between empires and armies. In the medieval era the city of Ani had 100,000 inhabitants in the Gagik period (989-1020) and by the 40 churches, chapels and tombs. Ani was known as "Church City 1001" and today it was included in the UNESCO list. The city has suffered from the conflicts between the Armenian kingdoms of Bagratuni, Byzantium, Seljuk, Mongols, Ottoman, Iran and Russia. Ani later passed into the hands of the newly established Republic of Armenia and in 1920 it was included in the Republic of Turkey. Today it is located on the border between Turkey and Armenia.
THE RUINS OF ANI
The huge Walls, with numerous defensive towers and reliefs from the time of King Smbat (977–989)
The Church of San Gregorio de Tigran Honents (1215): it is very well preserved, especially the frescoes. Interior is covered with frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible and the life of Saint Gregory. The exterior has reliefs of animals and texts in Armenian.
Church of San Gregorio (Aboughamrents) and Church of San Gregorio (Gagik I) have a circular plan and conical roof, they are really photogenic buildings to walk between columns and capitals.
The ciutadella is where the palace of the Armenian kings and the church of the nuns used to be in the canyon.
The Church of the Virgin Mary named as the Ani Cathedral was built in 989 by the architect Trdat, who repaired the dome of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. The structure achieves an impressive sense of height with a large 30-meter apse. It is one of the monuments that you should not miss if you go to Ani.
The Manucehr Mosque with its soaring tower was built by the Seljuk Turks in 1072.