Bagaran

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Bagaran (Armenian: Բագարան) was a town and fortress located 5 kilometers west of the right bank of the Akhurian River, formerly a capital of Armenia.

Bagaran, literally meaning "God's Place", was founded at the end of the 3rd century BC by the Armenian King Orontes III (212 BC - 200 BC) to house the images of the gods and royal ancestors brought from the earlier holy city of Armavir. Orontes established his brother Eruaz there as high priest of the Armenian pantheon ^[1] During his reign, Bagaran became the religious center and holy city of Orontid Armenia. In the time of Artaxias I (190 BC - 160 BC) the idols of Bagaran were transferred to the new capital of Artaxata.^[2] Nevertheless, Bagaran remained an important religious center of Armenia until its conversion to Christianity in 301.^[3]

When the Bagratids took control of the region in the 9th century, Bagaran was briefly their first capital. After the consecration of Ani as the new capital of Armenia, the town flourished as a stop on the transit trade route from there to the West.^[3]

Bagaran was noted for the fine church of St. Theodore (built 624-631). The city was destroyed in the Mongol period but its remains were still visible in the early 20th century.^[3]