Echmiadzin Cathedral (Armenia): description, history, interesting facts

There are many cathedrals and temples around the world today. Some keep a centuries-old history, others are still "young", and some even completely ceased to exist because of wars, destruction or natural phenomena.

Many of them have been completely or practically destroyed, many have been restored to their former appearance or have been slightly updated in their design. But it's all appearance. The history of the various cathedrals remains rich in events, secrets and interesting facts.

And, of course, the most interesting will be the history of the first Christian churches in the world, which have survived to this day. One of such buildings is the Echmiadzin Cathedral, which is located in Armenia. It is the most beautiful Christian temple that appeared at the dawn of religion.

How the cathedral appeared

The Etchmiadzin Cathedral was in fact erected in the distant 301 AD. Today it is the main Christian church of the Armenian Apostolic Church. In those years he dominated the period from 303 to 484 years, and later - from 1411. In combination, this temple was then the residence of the first Supreme Patriarch of the Catholicos of All Armenians - Gregory the Illuminator (Lusavorich).

The city where Etchmiadzin Cathedral was built - Vagharshapat - is the oldest city, which was founded on the site of the ancient settlement of Vargdesvan by the king Vargas the First in the first half of the 2nd century AD. Later the name of the city was changed to Etchmiadzin.

The very word "Echmiadzin" means "the place where the Only Begotten appeared". Also the Etchmiadzin Cathedral is called the more ancient name - "Shokahat", which translates as "light source".

The legend of the creation of the cathedral

There is a tradition concerning the construction of this cathedral. He is associated with King Trdat the Third and the Catholicos Gregory the Illuminator. According to this legend, the king once gave his subordinates the order to punish 33 nurse-martyrs martyrically, which later went mad. And among the prisoners at that time was Gregory the Enlightener, who was able to heal the tsar's ailment, restore his sanity and convert to the Christian faith. Of course, the subjects of the king did the same thing a little later. Thus, all of Armenia was converted to Christianity.

Legends about the location of the temple

There is a legend about the place where the temple was supposed to be located. The future first Catholicos for a long time could not choose a place for the cathedral, but one day Gregory, who later became the first patriarch of Etchmiadzin, had a dream. In a dream, the Only Begotten came to him (Christ). He came down from heaven with a fiery hammer in his hand and pointed to the place for the construction of the temple. The cathedral was built in the territory of the former pagan temple, where they worshiped local pagan gods.

There is a similar legend, according to which a swamp was located on the site of the future temple. And in a dream to Gregory Jesus Christ appeared with a golden branch of a willow, outlining the circle in its proper place. The same legend tells that at first the masonry fell apart every day, and the construction was very slowed by this. Then Jesus appeared to the Catholicos a second time to say that the place was cursed with the presence of evil spirits and that it would disperse it. And then Gregory remembered the willow branch. He came to the construction site with a willow branch torn along the road and began to wave it. According to legend, all the evil spirits were dispersed, and nothing prevented erecting the city cathedral of St. Echmiadzin.

History of the construction of the cathedral

Over its centuries-old history, the cathedral has undergone many reconstructions and restorations. Like many other buildings, this masterpiece of architecture has been built for more than one century.

Initially, the Etchmiadzin Cathedral was built as a rectangular building in the form of a simple basilica, and later became a cathedral with a dome in the center. The first material that was used for him was a tree. Already in the 5th century the church took on a cross-shaped form with a dome. The prince Vagan Mamikonyan, who was in charge at the time, assisted in this.

Further changes in the architecture of the cathedral were made by the Catholicos Komitas and Nerses the Third. And in the first half of the 7th century it was decided to rebuild the cathedral, using stone instead of wood. Then the outlines of the cathedral were laid, which have survived until now.

In the 12th century another dome was built, and now the western entrance was decorated with a three-tier bell tower. And six centuries later, six-column rotundas (a circular building with a dome) were added from three sides of the temple along the southern, northern and eastern sides. Now the cathedral had a five-domed wedding.

The cathedral was painted in 1721. The basic elements are a naturalistic ornament in the form of blue-violet and red-orange plants.

Museum in the Etchmiadzin Cathedral

In 1869, on the eastern side of the temple, an extension was built-a vestry, in which church property and various precious relics were kept. To date, this building is a museum where sacred relics, church attire, embroidered with pearls and gold, crosses and staffs of Catholicos, various ritual objects were preserved. Also in the museum are the chairs of the Catholicos, which are decorated with figures of silver, with ivory and mother of pearl.

The oldest collection of manuscripts was collected and preserved exactly by the Etchmiadzin Cathedral. Armenia at that time, like other states, accumulated a lot of artistic and literary masterpieces.

But it is worth noting that the values are constantly "traveled", which was quite dangerous for them because of their fragility. An example of this is the transfer of the Catholicos residence to Dvin. Until the 12th century the collection continued to move until in 1441 it returned to Echmiadzin.

Already in the 20th century the temple was significantly restored. The columns and arches that held the dome were well fortified, and the dome was lined with lead. At the same time, marble was used to build a new altar and lay the floor of the cathedral. The elements of the mural painting from the inside were also updated and supplemented with details.

Other structures located on the territory of the cathedral

In addition to the museum, the description of the Echmiadzin Cathedral should also include the presence of the Ecclesiastical Academy of Saint Echmiadzin. This educational institution is unique and unique in its kind.

As for subjects and training, there are not many people attending lectures. The audience includes about 50 people. Basic subjects are mainly humanitarian - philosophy, psychology, logic, languages, world history and rhetoric.

Etchmiadzin Cathedral in modern times

The history of this temple, as we see, is rich in various facts, filled with legends and stories. Today the Etchmiadzin Cathedral is the main cathedral of Armenia. It is visited annually by many tourists. This is the cultural and spiritual heritage of the state, uniting all believers.