Akdamar is a small island in the southern stretch of Lake Van, about an hour's drive west of the city and twenty minutes by ferry from the dock at Gevaş. Almost all of the island is given over to one extraordinary building: the Armenian Church of the Holy Cross, built in 921 by King Gagik I of Vaspurakan.
What makes the church remarkable is the carved exterior. The entire outside wall, in pinkish stone, is covered in low-relief Biblical scenes: David and Goliath, Jonah and the whale, Adam and Eve, processions of saints and beasts. The carvings are unusually well preserved, and seen up close they are vivid, witty, and unmistakably medieval. Inside, faint frescoes survive on the upper walls. Plan a long half-day for the round trip from Van, and bring sun protection — the island is treeless and exposed.