The Selim (Orbelian) Caravanserai

The Orbelian Caravanserai (formerly known as the Selim Caravanserai) stands in the Vayots Dzor province of Armenia, on the southern side of the Selim (now Vardenyats) Pass. It is the best-preserved caravanserai in the country and a fine example of medieval Armenian secular architecture. Travellers and their animals on the international trade route leading to Lake Sevan found shelter here.

The caravanserai was built by Prince Chesar Orbelian and his brothers in 1332, during the reign of Abu Said Khan II, as recorded in the Armenian inscription in the vestibule. The Persian inscription over the entrance gives the dates 1326–1327. The hall is divided into 3 lengthwise sections by 7 pairs of columns. The animals were kept in the narrow side aisles, where there were stone troughs between the columns. The caravanserai was restored in 1956–1959.

The photograph shows the gabled entrance with carved decoration, with a relief of a lion on the left and of a bull on the right.