Located in the city of Vagharshapat, Armenia, the Etchmiadzin Cathedral is considered the oldest cathedral in the world.
It is the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church dating back to the 4th century.
According to scholars, it was the first cathedral built in ancient Armenia. Photo CreditArmenia’s patron saint Gregory the Illuminator built the original church between 301 and 303 according to tradition.
He built the church when Christianity was adopted as a state religion by King Tiridates III.
It is believed that saint Gregory had a vision of Christ who struck the ground with a golden hammer to show where the cathedral should be built.
The original church was built in the early fourth century. Photo CreditThe cathedral was renovated many times through the centuries.According to Faustus of Byzantium, the cathedral and the city of Vagharshapat were almost completely destroyed during the invasion of Persian King Shapur II in the 360s.
It was renovated partially in 353 by Nerses the Great and in 387 by Sahak Parthev.
In 1441 it was restored as catholicosate and remains as such to this day. Photo CreditIn 450, Sasanian King Yazdegerd II built a fire temple inside the cathedral in an attempt to impose Zoroastrianism on Armenians.During the excavations in the 1950s, the pyre od the fire temple was unearthed under the altar od the east apse.The last known renovations until the 15th centuries were made by Catholicos Komitas in 618 and Catholicos Nerses III in 640.
Echmiatsin cathedral entry. Photo CreditIn 1777 Simeon I of Yerevan took actions in preserving the cathedral. He established the first publishing house in Armenia near Echmiadzin.
During his reign, the monastery was completely walled and separated from the city Vagharshapat.By the early 19th century the Russian influence gradually penetrated into the region.The location of the Etchmiadzin, the Erivan Khanate became an arena for a rivalry between the Russian and Persian empires.
The last major alteration to the cathedral was made in 1868 by Catholicos Gevorg IV by adding a sacristy to its east end.
It is one of the most visited places in the country. Photo CreditThe cathedral holds a unique position in Armenian architecture history because it reproduces features of different periods of Armenian architecture.
Despite the fact that the cathedral was renovated many times it still retains the form of the building constructed in the 5th century.
A cross sculpture. Photo CreditIt has been an important location in Armenia not only religiously, but also politically and culturally.
Here is another story from us:A 16th-century cathedral carved with ...
The cathedral was listed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000 along with several important early medieval churches located nearby.
Pentru a putea adăuga comentarii trebuie să fii membru al altmarius !
Alătură-te reţelei altmarius