Gagik of Kars with His Family, a Miniature

Gagik of Kars with his family, a miniature from the early 11th century, Jerusalem.

Gagik of Kars, or Gagik Bagratuni, was an Armenian prince of the Bagratuni dynasty and king of the Kingdom of Kars from 1029 to 1065. He was the son of Abas and inherited the state in 1029. In 1065, under pressure from the Seljuk invasions, he was forced to cede his lands to Byzantium. Leaving Kars, he settled in the Byzantine Empire, received several towns and hundreds of villages from the emperor, and kept his independence, surrounded by his nobility and with his own army. He married Gurandukht, sister of Ruben, prince of Cilician Armenia. They had a daughter, Mariam.

The miniature shows three seated figures in richly patterned garments against a red background. The paint has flaked off in places.