SAINT-SIÈGE

Situated in the heart of the city of Etchmiadzie, the monastery grounds contain the cathedral and the two catholicossal palaces - the old one, from the ^18th century, with some interesting frescoed rooms, and the new one, built at the beginning of the ^20th century in the national neo-Armenian style, where the catholicos sits and resides - as well as several conventual buildings and beautiful gardens surrounding a pond. To mark the 2001 jubilee, a large arch was erected at the entrance.

The cathedral is the oldest Christian building in Armenia. Etchmiadzine means "descent of the only-begotten Son", in reference to the vision of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, to whom a supernatural being appeared to designate the site of the cathedral: "And on the crosses of these four columns, astonishing arches were united. And on this, I saw a building made of clouds, in the shape of a canopy with a dome, an astonishing divine creation". Of this dream, narrated by the Armenian historian Agathange, only the plan and foundations of the cathedral remain today. As soon as it was built, the cathedral was destroyed in 364 by the Persians, who replaced it with a Mazdean fire temple. Prince Vartan Mamikonian, a sworn enemy of the Persians, had it completely rebuilt around 484-485. Little remains of the restoration work carried out in the ^7th century. The current appearance is essentially due to work carried out in the ^17th century: the central dome, with its elegant twisted ogive arch, was raised in 1627; the vast two-storey openwork campanile, also abundantly sculpted with plant motifs, has stood at the entrance to the building since 1658, next to the tombs of the catholicos; the more sober lanterns have topped the apses - or conches - since 1683. The interior was decorated in the ^18th century with brightly colored frescoes, heralded by the polychrome bas-reliefs in the porch, painted in the Persian style by the Hovnatanian dynasty of Armenian painters. Resting on four sober pillars, the dome, decorated with plant motifs and little cherubs in red and gold, recalls the pages of Armenian illuminations. The frescoes have recently been restored to their original colors, and the halos of the saints are once again shining in all their golden glory. Finally, in 1869, the cathedral's chevet was extended by a large apse in Russian neo-classical style - as were all the conventual buildings surrounding the edifice - where religious objects are stored. After extensive restoration work, the cathedral reopened at the end of 2024.

The Treasury. This wing, which has been converted into a museum, houses the cathedral's treasury, with its many pious relics, such as the Passion Spear, the tip of which, said to have pierced Christ, was brought from Jerusalem by the apostle Thadeus (it was long kept at the Géghard monastery), the hand of Gregory the Illuminator or that of St. James of Nisibe, encased in a case ending in the shape of a hand whose fingers seem ready to give a blessing, a fragment of a plank from Noah's Ark in a gilded silver frame, a piece of the skull of the Christian saint and martyr Hripsimée, a wooden cross decorated with a descent from the cross, the work of St. John the Evangelist designated as the Savior, Amenaprkitch in Armenian, as well as richly embroidered priestly vestments, tiaras inlaid with precious stones, scepters covered with gems, carpets for worship, etc.

Tiradate Gate. On the outskirts of the cathedral stands an arch known as the Tiridate Gate, dating from the ^4th century in reference to King Trdat's conversion to Christianity. It is under this modest arch that the catholicos and his retinue pass to reach the cathedral from the residence of the Armenian spiritual leader during major religious events. A modern, replica arch made of ochre tuff has stood at the entrance to the site since the jubilee year 2001, the 1,^700th anniversary of the conversion.

Rouben Sevag Museum. Housed in fully renovated rooms of the former ^18th-century guesthouse, this museum dedicated to Armenian physician and writer Rouben Sevak, who died during the genocide, was inaugurated in September 2013. In addition to archives and documents relating to the poet, it contains pieces from the art collection of his nephew, Hovhannes Tchilinguirian, who had maintained a museum in his honor on the Côte d'Azur in France. It was this museum that moved to the vaults of the former Catholicossal building, where works by Aïvazovski, Edgar Chahine and Carzou can be seen.

Kevorkian Seminary. Outside the monastery grounds, a large building topped by a vast dome is, along with some of the monastery buildings, one of the few remaining examples of architecture from the Tsarist era. This is the Kevorkian University Seminary, built at the end of the ^19th century, which trained generations of Armenian clergymen, theologians and intellectuals. Closed during the Soviet period, it was reopened after independence, and returned to its religious and educational vocation in 1997, following extensive restoration work.