ABSTRACT
The contemporary texts tell us much about the duties expected of Armenian royalty, including the construction of churches and monasteries and the commissioning and donation of lavish church furnishings, including illuminated manuscripts, jewelled altars and reliquaries. We also read about the secular constructions of Armenian kings, including cities and palaces. Only a few of the objects so described survive in their original state today. This chapter presents an analysis of the textual descriptions, and seeks to link their presentations of good rulership with those conveyed by royal portraits and ceremonial.
