Lekit church, Minor basilica in Qakh District, Azerbaijan
Lekit church is a 5th–6th-century Albanian basilica in the Tsakhur village of Lekit, Qakh District, about 1 km from the village. Its central cylindrical volume, 22 m in diameter, is built around a tetraconch of four conches on four corner piers; two small apsed side rooms adjoin the east side. Walls of high-quality square brick and less carefully dressed fieldstone carry limestone portals, interior half-columns and exterior pilasters.
Dating is debated: the Russian scholar P. D. Baranovsky placed the church in the 7th century, while A. Y. Kazaryan argued for the 670s–680s. According to Movses Kaghankatvatsi, the Albanian king Javanshir ordered a cathedral dedicated to Saint Gregory the Illuminator after attending the consecration of Zvartnots; it was built under Prince Varaz Trdat and Catholicos Yeliazar. Scientific study and restoration, led by Baranovsky in the 1940s, cleared the surrounding forest and reinforced a collapsing wall.
The church is a basilica of the 5th–6th centuries in the Tsakhur village of Lekit, one of the few surviving monuments of Caucasian Albanian architecture. According to the "History of Albania" of Movses Kaghankatvatsi, the Albanian king Javanshir (637–680) ordered its construction, and the work was carried out under the Albanian catholicos Yeliazar, who had previously been bishop of Sheki, the diocese to which Lekit belonged.
This place is reachable through local roads connecting to Qakh District with straightforward access from the main routes. Navigation to the exact location can be done using the coordinates 41.4785° latitude and 46.849889° longitude.
The church was built on the foundations of an ancient Zoroastrian temple, according to Azerbaijani sources. Scientific study and restoration began in the 1940s under P. D. Baranovsky, when the surroundings were cleared of forest and one crumbling wall was reinforced.
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