Tavush Fortress

The ruins of the fortress, which are still visible today, are located in the city of Berd, on a high and steep mountain, in the area of ​​the Soranner Arboretum. The fortress of Tslik Amram (9th-13th centuries), also known as the fortress of Tavush, was located on the main road from the Caspian Sea region. The fortress was first mentioned in written sources in the 10th century as the residence  of the Armenian king Ashot Yerkat. Fragments of ancient vessels and other small items are still found in the fort area. 10-11th centuries. the fortress belonged to the Kyurikian branch of the Bagratunis, in the 12th-13th centuries to the Zakaryans. The castle has been abandoned since the 14th century, as a result of which it was gradually destroyed and disintegrated. The fort consisted of a citadel and a lower fort. According to one of the traditions, Tslik Amram, after whom the fortress was named, was a powerful king in the 8th-9th centuries and his wife Aspram was secretly in love with the great king Ashot II Yerkat. Ashot Yerkat was also in love with Aspram, and when Tslik Amram discovered this forbidden love, he imprisoned his wife in a castle. Recent excavations have revealed the skeleton of a woman believed to be Aspram.