(a.k.a. Surp Hovhannes)
Location: Avan district within the limits of Yerevan, capital of Armenia (40.2150° N, 44.5720° E)
Sacred to: Pro-Byzantine Catholics
Why: This church was built to serve as Hovhannes Bagabanetsi’s – nominated prelate of Byzantine Armenia by the emperor Mauricius – headquarters; it was also later dedicated to the apostles. When the Persian King Khosrov II conquered the area, he eliminated the Avian Catholicos and turned the church into a monastery.
Location: Avan district within the limits of Yerevan, capital of Armenia (40.2150° N, 44.5720° E)
Sacred to: Pro-Byzantine Catholics
Why: This church was built to serve as Hovhannes Bagabanetsi’s – nominated prelate of Byzantine Armenia by the emperor Mauricius – headquarters; it was also later dedicated to the apostles. When the Persian King Khosrov II conquered the area, he eliminated the Avian Catholicos and turned the church into a monastery.
Built in the late 6th century between 591- 602 AD, Katoghike Tsiranavor Church is Yerevan’s oldest surviving church. Despite restoration work during 1940 -1941, 1956 -1966, and 1968, you only see the ruins of this ancient church. Regardless, this church is still considered to be important architecturally because it is supposed to have been a prototype of Saint Hripsime Church that was later constructed in 618. Much of the architectural design is not confirmed, only supposed. For example, architects believe that the roof used to have a single large done in the center with four smaller cupolas in each corner. If this theory were to be correct, then the church would have been the first church with a roof of this kind. Use of the Katoghike Tsiranavor Church declined as time went on; the structure soon grew weak and the roof crumbled. It was already in ruins when it was partially restored in 1940.