Lori Berd Fortress

Amrakits, Armenia, Armenia

---

Lori Berd Fortress, also known as Lori Fortress, is a large 11th‑century medieval Armenian fortress located near the village of Lori Berd in the Lori Province of Armenia, close to Stepanavan and the confluence of the Urut, Dzoraget, and Miskhana rivers.

It was founded by David Anhoghin (David the Landless), a member of the Kyurikian branch of the Bagratuni dynasty, and from 1065 became the capital of the Kingdom of Tashir‑Dzoraget, reaching its peak in the second half of the 11th century before later passing to the Zakarian (Zakarid) lords and eventually being abandoned after successive Turkish–Persian wars in the 17th century.

The fortress covers about 33–35 hectares on a mountain plateau of almost triangular shape, with a citadel of about 8.5 hectares, and is surrounded by deep ravines and defensive walls up to 20–25 meters high and in some places 20 meters thick, making it extremely difficult to approach and historically one of the most powerful fortified cities in the region.

Inside the preserved remains include the citadel walls, vaulted gates, a civil building that once served as a church, and especially two medieval hypocaust bathhouses with advanced heating systems, as well as an arched bridge over the Urut River and numerous cross‑carved rocks (khachkars) in the gorges, with excavations revealing weapons, tools, jewelry, pottery, glass, bone and stone objects, and imported goods from Georgia, Persia, Central Asia, and Mesopotamia, indicating a rich urban and craft life.