The Saint Bartholomew Monastery stood in the village of Albayrak near Başkale in Van Province, Turkey, close to the Iranian border, in the historic region of Vaspurakan. It belonged to the Armenian Apostolic Church. Tradition links it to King Sanatruk in the first century, at the tomb of the apostle Bartholomew. The first documented mention is from the thirteenth century, when it was likely built.
It had a gavit with a central skylight dome, a bell tower, and a western portal with a carving of Bartholomew slaying a dragon and a Holy Trinity relief. A gospel was copied here in 1339.
The 1715 earthquake destroyed the dome, which was rebuilt from 1755 to 1760. It was abandoned during the genocide, and a final liturgy was held in August 1916. Security forces restricted access from 1990 to 2013, and restoration ordered in 2011 had not begun by 2014.
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