Early History
Functioning from the earliest Christian era Saint Sarkis Cathedral was a spacious complex consisting of St. Sarkis, St. Gevork and St. Hakob churches. It included patriarchal offices and a school as well. The entire complex was surrounded by a fortified wall.
The St. Sarkis Church used to serve as the Patriarch’s official seat, while the monastery as a patriarchal inn for the guests.
St. Sarkis Church after 1679
During the 17th century, particularly in 1679 an earthquake occurred (back then Armenia was part of the Persian Empire). With the magnitude of 7.0 the earthquake destroyed and ruined a number of important buildings in Yerevan. Among those buildings were Yerevan Fortress, which was completely destroyed, Surb Zoravor Church of Yerevan, Saint Poghos Church, Saint Katoghike Church and Saint Sargis. The earthquake destroyed the St. Sarkis Church with the hermitage monastery.
The church was later twice rebuilt. It was firstly rebuilt during the rule of His Holiness Edesatsi Nahapet Catholicos (1691-1705). The second rebuilding works were launched within 1835-1842. The present day St. Sarkis church is due to that reconstruction.
St. Sarkis Church Renovation
The exterior and the interior of this church greatly lost to the beauty of other Old Yerevan City churches. It was the least good looking. Interestingly, the church was one of the most significant Yerevan churches, but its look in no way harmonized with its significance. It was the seat of the Araratian Patriarchal Diocese. The church obviously needed renovation.
New breath was given to the church under the rule of His Holiness Vazgen I Catholicos of All Armenians (1955 – 1994); the church was greatly renovated and improved. The reconstruction of the church was launched upon a plan worked out by architect Rafael Israelyan in 1972. The reconstruction didn’t cause the overall character of the building to change. Ani orange tufa rocks were added to the church’s facade.
Within 1971-1976 the interior of the church underwent significant improvements. A gallery was added for the church choir. It can be found on the eastern part. With this long line of improvements it simply became a necessity to remove the old dome and drum. They were to be replaced with a higher dome with polyhedral fan-shaped spire. The construction of the belfry was completed in 2000.
Architect Rafael Israelyan passed away in 1973, and further construction works were undertaken and continued by Artsrun Galikian.
The reconstruction of the Saint Sarkis Church was made possible due to the donation made by benefactors Sargis Kurkjian and his children, who live in London.
In 2009 a 2 kW photovoltaic station (Photovoltaic /PV systems use solar panels to convert sunlight into electricity) was installed on the roof of Saint Sarkis Church in Yerevan. It was assembled and laminated by specialists at the State Engineering University of Armenia.
Currently no evidence of that once not that attractive church can be found. The church looks awesome and yet preserves the religious spirit, which helps people visiting it feel relieved. Nowadays, Saint Sarkis Church is so beloved that most people choose the two most important events of their lives (Wedding and Christening) to be held here. In this regard, the church is always full of not only constant churchgoers and beievers but also with various people and tourists.
Location
Saint Sarkis Cathedral is located on the left bank of the Hrazdan River in the Kentron District. The closest nearby place worth a visit is the Blue Mosque with its attractive history.
