The Monastery of Alahan

The West Church, referred to by Gough as the “Church of the Evangelists” is the largest of all the churches in the monastery, with  an overall measurement of 36 by 16 m (118 by 52.5 ft). The church has a basilica form with three rows – a central nave and two side aisles. It was  built after the cave church, but before the East Church. It is the least preserved of all three churches and early visitors to the site did not identify it as a  church, but as a gateway to the site. According to Gough, the provision of two pastophories proves that it was a church, and decorations found on its  adorned gateway make reference to Evangelism, supporting Gough’s given name for the building. Gough’s excavation discovered decorations of sculpted  masonry and rich mosaics, which suggests that the church had wealthy patronage during its time. The rugged terrain of the mountains meant that  much of the cliff side had to be cut back during building. Even then, the plan of the church was adapted to fit the lay of the land. As a result, it doesn’t  resemble the perfect east/west orientation that was typical of churches at the time.

The East Church, located on the far eastern side of the monastery, is the best preserved of all the churches. It is considerably smaller than the West  Church, measuring 23 by 15 m (75.5 by 49 ft) in size. It has a basilica design with a tower superimposed over the east section of the nave. Gough  believes that the roof was likely not made of stone, as practically none were found among the rubble of his excavation. Rather, he suggests that it was  likely made of a light timber tiles. This church is less decorated than the other two because it was only approached from within the monastery complex.  It contains only slight adornments on the entrance. A colonnaded walkway, originally covered, connects the West and the East Churches.

The walkway also provided access to other buildings in the complex, like the baptistery and living quarters. It also restricted access to the site from the hillside below,  thanks to a high retaining wall on its south side. No evidence exists to suggest the type of roof that covered the walkway. A twin-apsed baptistery with  two aisles, oriented east-west, with an entrance to the south through the north wall of the colonnaded walkway. The discovery of a cruciform-  shaped baptismal pool confirms that the building was used as a baptistery. It is believed that it was built as the community at Alahan expanded, as a  font located in the cave church likely served as the original baptistery. There is painting present inside the baptistery that is not in the east church,  perhaps because the painters were no longer present when the east church was finished. This suggests that there was a considerable lapse in time  between the construction of each building. There is not enough evidence to suggest conclusively what type of roof covered the building. As the  community grew, the living quarters in the cave complex were no longer sufficiently sized. Additional living quarters were built between the west church  and the baptistery with four separate groups of rooms. These quarters could be entered through the cave complex and the colonnaded walkway.

The  complex has many other spaces. These include a forecourt, located outside the east church and north of the colonnaded walkway; a necropolis just  west of the forecourt; tombs of Tarasis the Elder and Younger, carved into the cliff side next to the necropolis; a spring complex that directed water  around and under buildings, both to keep them dry and to provide a reliable water source to the community; a bath house, located far east, past the  east church; and a lower terrace in the valley that was used for agriculture.