The Khachkar monument is one of the most characteristic symbols of Armenian identity, a product and sign of the unique development of Armenian culture. With its magnificent reliefs, the sacred meaning of the cross and the eternity-inspiring permanence of the stone, it has become one of the sacred values of the Armenian people.

It is an object of worship, a memorial stone symbolizing the connection between earthly and divine life. In the center of the khachkar monuments is carved a cross with an average height of 2 meters, and at the bottom a sun symbolizing eternity.

The largest complex of Armenian khachkar monuments is located in the city of Dugha in Nakhichevan. The Kugha Khachkars are one of the lasting and unique treasures and monuments of the sculptural treasury created by mankind, coming from the deep roots of the centuries-old art created by the Armenian people.

The art of the monuments of the Khachkars of Jugha, their full subject matter, are eloquent and visual documents of the medieval (especially XV-XVII centuries) cultural life of the Armenian people.

Due to the accurate reproduction of the historical reality of the past, this carved treasure, reproduced with high artistic skill, provides an important and irreplaceable material not only for the study of sculpture, but also for the study of urban life and everyday life of medieval Armenia.

One 20th century European scholar rightly noted: “There are several thousand crosses here. Each cross could be a rare exhibit of the most famous museum. In Europe they like to evaluate every museum exhibit. But all the millionaires of Europe can enter the khachkar forest of Old Jugha and come out bankrupt, almost without damaging it.”