Turkey contains the ancient city of Ani, once a medieval Armenian capital.
Ani stands on a plateau near Turkey’s modern border with Armenia. It flourished during the Bagratid Armenian period and became the capital of the Armenian kingdom under King Ashot III in the tenth century.
The city was celebrated for its churches, palaces, walls, and commercial importance. Its nickname, the “city of 1001 churches,” reflects its many religious buildings, although the exact number was symbolic rather than a precise surviving count.
Ani changed hands among several powers, including Byzantines, Seljuks, Georgians, and Mongols, and later declined after earthquakes and shifting trade routes. Its ruins are in present-day Kars Province, Turkey, not across the border in Armenia.