Not far from the city of Alaverdi, one of the largest cities in the Lori region, there is the ancient village of Sanahin, famous for its unique attraction – a medieval monastery of the 10th-13th centuries. – a treasure of ancient Armenian architecture.
This monastery was the educational center of Medieval Armenia. An academy, libraries, scriptoriums and schools were founded here, where books were copied. Sanahin owned vast lands.

In the first half of the 10th century, Armenian clergy expelled from Vasantium built the Church of St. Astvatsatsin (Holy Mother of God) in Sanahin. The church is very similar to Georgian religious buildings of that time – a cruciform facade topped with a large dome on a round drum. Around this church, from the second half of the same century, the main church of the monastery gradually rose – Amenaprkich (“All-Savior”, 962), the Academy of Gregory Magistros (11th century), the round temple of St. Gregory the Illuminator (1061), the building of the scriptorium (1063 g.), bell tower (XIII century)

There are a number of other buildings on the territory of the monastery – the tomb of the Zakharid princes and the Argutinsky-Dolgoruky princes (1189); Chapel of St. Sarkis, Church of St. Karapet, etc. The monastery complex is under the protection of UNESCO and is included in the List of World Heritage Monuments. The monastery is currently under reconstruction