ABSTRACT
The Roman Church’s intolerance towards the oriental churches, which were declared “heretical” when not in union with Rome, was the biggest hindrance of all. This created a deep segregation within the group of Christian churches. In addition, during the fifteenth century, a time of dramatic cultural decline has been even less researched compared to other epochs in Armenia’s history. At that time, in Armenia, the art of miniature painting still flourished in some of the monasteries. During the fourteenth century, the Dominican order had founded the Dominican Armenian order to increase its influence in Armenia right in the biblical “centre” close to the Holy Mountain Ararat, in Nakhijevan. Careful investigation into the symbols and their different meanings in the culturally mixed zones is urgently needed and may lead to important insights regarding a precise understanding of artistic coexistence in the Christian Orient.
