Built on the orders of Gagik Artsruni, ruler of the kingdom of Vaspurakan, it was the seat of (decreasingly influential) Armenian patriarchs from 1116 until 1895. In the 19th century several noted European travellers paid visits. Layard, the British archaeologist cum diplomat, describes being rowed across the blue waters of Lake Van to Akhtamar in the company of “four sturdy monks.” Some years later, the intrepid Isabella Bird made the same trip, writing disparagingly that the incumbent patriarch “has the reputation of extreme ignorance, and of being more of a farmer than an ecclesiastic.”  

Tomorrow, it will be officially opened by dignitaries from the contemporary political scene -- with top brass from the military joined by representatives from the Ministries of Culture and Tourism, the Interior, the National Intelligence Agency (MIT) and a former governor of Van. They’ll have a long way to travel, as Van lies some 1,237 kms southeast of Ankara. The $1.5 million restoration of this beautiful church, which began in May 2005, was government funded -- an allocation of resources that has significance well beyond the rescue of an important historical building. Since the inception of the Turkish republic in 1923, the country’s Armenian past has been either ignored or denied. That doyen of female travellers, Freya Stark, visiting Van in the late 1950s, wrote that she planned to extend her stay as “the island of Akhtamar, with a famous 11th century church which no one for years was allowed to visit” had just been opened to visitors.

Cynics will suggest that it was only after the EU made funds available and invited proposals for this project that the Turkish government stepped in. Whatever the reason, the restoration of an Armenian Christian building is a promising sign that a balanced view of Turkey’s past is taking root at the highest levels. In a gesture of reconciliation, officials from Armenia have been invited to the ceremony -- even though Turkey and Armenia severed diplomatic ties years ago.

Political ramifications aside, what is it that makes Akhtamar (or more properly Surb Khach -- the Church of the Holy Cross) so special? Not its size -- this is a gem of a church, not a giant of a cathedral. Built on a cruciform plan, with four apses, it measures only 15m by 12m. Yet it is wonderfully proportioned, its central polygonal drum surmounted by a pyramidal roof straining towards the heavens, its reddish sandstone perfectly complementing the glimmering snow on the mountains ringing the azure lake.

What makes it unique, however, is the profusion of relief carvings -- based on scenes from the Old and New Testaments -- which liberally decorate the exterior. Although the execution of the carvings is rather naive, the depictions Adam and Eve, Jonah and the whale and King Gagik presenting a model of the church to Jesus (amongst many other scenes) are delightful. They also show a distinct eastern (Iranian and Islamic) influence, not surprisingly given that the monophysite Armenian church was at theological odds with the mainstream Byzantine Orthodox Church in Constantinople, and preferred to be ruled by the Islamic Abbasid Caliph based in Baghdad. A team of five architects were in charge of the recent restoration, including a Turk of Armenian origin. The roof, cracked, leaking and sprouting grass and moss, has undergone a major overhaul. The faded, defaced murals of saints have been carefully patched-up and repainted, new floorboards laid and the relief carvings on the exterior walls restored to their former glory.

Over the years Akhtamar has been targeted by treasure hunting villagers (convinced that the departed Armenians must have buried their valuables near the church), trigger happy local hunters who used the relief carvings of biblical figures for target practice, and thoughtless youths who daubed the interior with crude graffiti. The region’s severe winters had also taken their natural toll. Restoration was imperative. Those of us, however, who had grown used to its isolated, crumbling yet romantic glory will find it hard to accustom ourselves to the spruce new pier, ticket office, walkways, guard posts and shop (please, no Akhtamar tea-towels!) -- not to mention the scrubbed-up facade and gleaming interior.

Lovers of the remote and romantic can take solace in the fact that the impossibly blue waters of Lake Van hold another jewel of an island church -- that of Surb Hovhannes (St John) on the islet of Çarpanak/Ktuts. An hour and a half from Van’s harbour by a tiny, rusting ex-fishing vessel, it is completely deserted bar a colony of screaming gulls. Be warned, though. Local rumours suggest that this charming monastery church, dating back to the 15th century, has been earmarked for an Akhtamar style makeover. A 779-year era ended on Akhtamar with the death of its last patriarch in 1895. Another, much shorter, concluded with the departure of the last monks in the vicissitudes of 1916. Until the end of the 1950’s Akhtamar was forbidden to foreign visitors. For the last fifty odd years it has been the goal of adventurous travellers seeking out a remote, infrequently visited ruin in one of the world’s most austerely beautiful spots -- Lake Van. What the future holds for this unique island church is uncertain, but if its restoration leads to any further rapprochement between Turkey and Armenia, it will have been $1.5 million well spent.

[FINGERTIP FACTS] 

Getting to Van: Turkish Airlines from Ä°stanbul and Ankara - daily flights. Atlas Jet daily from Istanbul. Sunexpress Mondays and Wednesdays from Antalya. Regular coaches from all parts of Turkey

Getting to Akhtamar: A ferryboat leaves from the quay on the mainland opposite the island at frequent intervals in the summer; on demand at other times of the year. Prices were YTL 2.5 per person in 2006, but may well have risen for 2007

Getting to Çarpanak: Currently the only way is to hire a boat from Van harbor, which costs around YTL 150. The boat holds up to 20 people, and will wait for you to explore/picnic on the island. If you visit in June/July you’ll be mobbed by nesting gulls.

Admission and opening hours: Akhtamar dawn-dusk, the price of YTL 2 in 2006 is likely to rise considerably following the official opening. Çarpanak island/church has neither site guardian nor entrance fees at present

Where to stay

Akdamar Hotel; central Van. Best of the city hotels www.akdamarotel.com Tel 0432/214 9923

Merit Hotel; 12km from Van, on the way to Akhtamar. Beautiful lakeside location www.merithotels.com Tel 0432/312 3060

Ĺžahin Hotel; central Van. Cheaper than the above, perfectly adequate www.otelsahin.com Tel 0432/216 3062

Where to eat

Besse; central Van on Melek Ä°Ĺź Merkezi, Sanat Sokak. Excellent value, traditional food and soothing surroundings, but no alcohol

Saçı Beyaz; central Van, junction of Kazım Karabekir Caddesi and Cumhuriyet Caddesi. Poshest of Van’s many patisseries, with some tables outside for people watching

Guides and Maps

The Ahtamar Reliefs (published by Turizm Yayınları); Armenian Van/Vaspurkan (Mazda Publishers Inc) Blue Guide: Turkey; Rough Guide to Turkey; Lonely Planet:Turkey; Kartographischen Verlag Reinhard Ryborsch map series no:6