The monastery of the Great Walnut Trees stands in the village of d’Erganënguzik‘, or Ergan [Ergen, Geçimli], at 39° 01' N and 39° 15' E, between Khozan [Hozat], to the north, and Tsaghman [Sağman], to the south, on the left hand of the Khozan River, which flows further south into the eastern Euphrates, or Aradzani [Murad Çay].
The monastery, dedicated to the Holy Precursor and to the Mother of God, was founded in 975. The only one of its founders known to us is Prince Mekhit‘ar the Great, quite likely a Mamigonian, lord of the principality of Hantzit‘, which at the time encompassed the present-day plain of Khapert [Harput] and the bordering lands. But it is likely that the main author of this initiative was none other than the Armenian Emperor of Byzantium, John I Tzimiskes (Hovhannes Tchëmëchguig, 969-976), or perhaps some civil or military dignitary close to him. In effect, Tzimiskes came from the nearby town of Herapolis, the present-day name of which, Chëmëchgadzak [Çemisgezek], recalls this connection. A chronicle also relates that it was in the castle of Hantzit‘ that he placed the young co-emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII, safely out of the way of intrigues. We do not know if either the bishop of Chëmëshgadzak or of Medzguerd [Mazgirt] – another nearby town – mentioned in 1307 on the occasion of the synod held in the royal city of Sis [Kozan], were abbots of this monastery, but it is mentioned in the 15th century as a “desert” and a flourishing scriptorium. Prior Arak‘el of Paghesh (Arak‘el Paghichetsi), a student of the famous Gregory Dzerents (Krikor Dzerents, see n° 23), renovated the monastery church shortly before 1453 thanks to the generosity of Baron Arevshah, who at this time also financed the construction of the church of the Holy Resurrection (Surp Harut‘iun) at Erganënguzik. The monastery is mentioned between 1508 and 1608, again as a place where manuscripts were produced and conserved, especially under the abbotship of Bishop John (Hovhannes), between 1582 and 1603. The monastery subsequently fell into decline and saw its lands appropriated in the 19th century. In the 1870s, the church was in need of consolidation in several places.
The monastery of the Great Walnut Trees or the Holy Precursor of Ergan includes essentially the church of the Holy Mother of God, a large basilica with three naves measuring some 22 × 17 m, built on steps. Left empty since the Great War, it has, like the Holy Resurrection of Ergan, been used as a source of stone. In the 1980s, over half the south façade and two thirds of the west side had disappeared, as had the roof and pillars. The remains have since deteriorated. To the east, in particular, the back of the central apse has a gaping hole and cracks run to the top of the east wall, which threatens to collapse at any moment. A projection on the basis of what can still be seen of the church suggests a building with a central nave covered by a pitched roof with two slopes, and a lower slope on either side covering the narrower side naves. Two absidioles, one of which is surmounted by a chamber, flank the central apse, whose triumphal arch provided the departure for two rows of five pillars connecting the arch to the west façade. Niches under arches are hollowed into the inside walls. A series of engaged pillars on the inside and the outside complete the structure. The church, which had large doors on the west, north and south sides, was admired for its surprising sculptures, still present in the preserved parts. Typologically it is related to the basilicas built at the same time in the Armeno-Georgian borderlands. Nothing remains of the monastery buildings or of the church of the Holy Resurrection.
Érévanian, 1956, 218. Oskian, 1962, 121-127. Thierry, 1986-1987, 381-417.