Etchmiadzin Cathedral

Vagharshapat, Armenia

Open to visitors

The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.

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Etchmiadzin Cathedral in Vagharshapat, Armenia, is the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church and traditionally considered the first cathedral built in ancient Armenia, if not the oldest cathedral in the world. Founded between 301 and 303 by Saint Gregory the Illuminator following Armenia's adoption of Christianity under King Tiridates III, the original structure was erected over a pagan temple as a symbol of religious conversion. The core of the present building dates to 483 or 484, when Vahan Mamikonian rebuilt the cathedral after Persian invasion had caused severe damage. Though it subsequently fell into centuries of neglect, Etchmiadzin was restored as the catholicosate seat in 1441 and has remained the administrative headquarters of the Armenian Church since then. The cathedral was plundered by Shah Abbas I in 1604, losing relics and materials, but underwent subsequent renovations including the addition of belfries in the late seventeenth century and a sacristy in 1868. Today the 27-meter-high structure incorporates styles from various periods of Armenian architecture and stands as a major pilgrimage site and cultural monument recognized as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Movement

Armenian architecture

Built: 0303
Type: cathedral, church building
Heritage: part of UNESCO World Heritage Site, cultural heritage monument in Armenia
Height: 27 m
Place: Vagharshapat, Armenia

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Location

40.16186, 44.29100