The Monastery of Saint Thaddeus is known locally as Qara Kelisa, the Black Church, and the name comes from the dark stone used in its lower walls, set against lighter stone above. It stands in the hills of north-western Iran, in West Azerbaijan province, in a green valley where the road runs between orchards and low ridges. Tradition says that the apostle Thaddeus founded a church here in the first century and was buried on the spot, and while no one can prove that, the site has been a place of Armenian pilgrimage for many centuries.
The buildings you see now are far younger and belong mostly to the medieval period, rebuilt after earthquakes and repaired in later ages. The main church is a compact, strong structure, with steep roofs and a central dome, and its walls carry delicate carved reliefs of saints and animals. Inside it is cool, dim and quiet. Once a year, in July, Armenians from across Iran and beyond gather here for a major feast with pilgrims sleeping in tents around the walls, and the surrounding fields are full of music, smoke from cooking fires and the sound of children. At other times of year, the place can be completely empty, with only a caretaker and the wind.
The roads here are the long climbing roads of the Iranian north-west: wide valleys with irrigated fields, then tighter sections as they pass over ridges. The surface is usually fine on main roads and rough on village tracks. The weather is the main variable. Summers are dry and hot, snow arrives in November and stays until March at height, and spring rain can turn a dirt lane to mud.
For the Iranian side, Khoy and Maku have all the supplies you could need. Visitors should dress modestly, women covering their hair when they enter, and ask before taking photographs inside. A small donation is a courtesy, and a patient walk around the outside walls is worth more time than a quick look at the doorway.