Museum After the Architect Momik
After visiting Noravank, stop into this museum located on the site of the medieval monastic complex. The museum is mostly dedicated to the manuscripts and reliefs created by Momik, a famous architect, miniature painter and sculptor from the late 13th to early 14th centuries.
While most of the objects on display are copies of the work of Momik and his contemporaries, exhibits invite you to get up close to some of the reliefs carved on to the buildings in the Noravank complex. There are also displays that feature the processes of mixing colors for illuminated manuscripts and a case that exhibits some archaeological finds from the surrounding area. The entrance hall also showcases photographs from the reconstruction of the Noravank in the late 1990s.
The museum interior (Photo by Stephanie Moore, My Armenia Program, Smithsonian Institution and USAID)
Objects on display (Photos by Stephanie Moore, My Armenia Program, Smithsonian Institution and USAID)
Objects on display (Photos by Stephanie Moore, My Armenia Program, Smithsonian Institution and USAID)
Cultural Attractions
Ethnographer Story: Momik Legend
A popular legend tells the story of how the late 13th- and early 14th-century great sculptor, architect, and artist Momik fell in love with the daughter of the Prince of Syunik. The Prince told Momik that he would allow him to marry his daughter under the condition that he build a church (some myths say several churches) in a short period of time. Momik obliged, and worked diligently to complete the construction. As he was nearing the completion of the St. Astvatsatsin church in Noravank, the Prince of Syunik sent a servant to the dome of the church, where Momik was working, and pushed Momik off the ledge. Momik died tragically before he was able to marry the Prince’s daughter. The legend claims that Momik was buried below the spot where he fell.