Appealingly sited overlooking a stretch of river gorge, this 13th-century church appears relatively intact, though the current main door is within what was once an internal wall, patched up after the western end of the nave was lost. Built in 1215 by a pious merchant, Tigran Honents, it is dedicated to St Gregory the Illuminator, but sometimes known in Turkish as Resimli Kilise (Church with Pictures) due to the lively, if partly defaced, frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible and Armenian church history.
The site is essentially invisible from the rest of Ani until you start to descend the curl of access steps.
