Monastery of Tsar

Monastery of Tsar was an Armenian Apostolic monastery located in the village Zar (Tsar) of Kelbajar region, Azerbaijan. It was built in 1301 in the Principality of Khachen. It was deliberately destroyed by Azeri authorities during the Soviet era. The monastery was blown up, two 13th century chapels were razed to the ground, and the pride of Tsar, the Church of the Holy Virgin, was dismantled. The elaborately engraved stones of the church were used to build storehouses, and they are today visible in the foundation of barns built by the Azeris. The author Boris Baratov documented the destruction, both in words and photos, in his book A Journey to Karabagh: Paradise Laid Waste.