Basalt Organ
Hanging columns.
Armen Manukov — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Камалян001 at en.wikipedia — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Armen Manukov — CC BY-SA 4.0 · ogannes from Tver, Russia — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Hanay — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Symphony of the Stones is a stretch of the Garni Gorge, carved by the Azat River in Kotayk Province, Armenia, south of the village of Garni and about 23 km east of Yerevan. The gorge is protected by law as a natural monument, and this section is also called the Basalt Organ. The gorge walls are lined with well-preserved hexagonal basalt columns, formed by ancient volcanic activity and slow cooling of the lava. The 1st-century Temple of Garni looks down on the gorge from a promontory above, and an 11th-century bridge crosses the river below. The grey columns hang from the cliffs like giant organ pipes, fanning out in places, with their hexagonal ends showing like a honeycomb. The Azat River runs over rocks along the floor of the gorge, its banks lined with trees and shrubs. Visitors reach the gorge by a road that drops to the left just before the Temple of Garni, or by a cobbled road from the village down into the valley, then walk along the cliffs to take in the columns. The visit pairs easily with the nearby Temple of Garni.
Hanging columns.
On the valley floor.
11th century.
Garni Gorge, Kotayk Province, Armenia
By a road down before the Temple of Garni.
The Temple of Garni.
