Cathedral of the Holy Mother of God ( hy, Սուրբ Աստվածածին Մայր Եկեղեցի), also known as the Our Lady of Seven Wounds ( hy, Սուրբ Աստվածամոր Յոթ Վերք), is a 19th-century church in

Gyumri Gyumri ( hy, Գյումրի, ) is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city w ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

. Occupying the northern side of the

Vartanants Square Vartanants Square ( hy, Վարդանանց Հրապարակ ''Vartanants Hraparak'') or Vardanants Square, is the large central town square in Gyumri, Armenia. It is bordered by the Abovyan street from the west, Gai street from the north, Shahumya ...

, the cathedral is the seat of the

Diocese of Shirak Diocese of Shirak ( hy, Շիրակի թեմ ''Shiraki t'em''), is one of the dioceses of the Armenian Apostolic Church covering the northern, central and south-western parts of the Shirak Province of Armenia. It almost covers 4/5th of the province ...

of the

Armenian Apostolic Church , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

. The church was constructed between 1873 and 1884.

Architecture

The church of the Holy Mother of God belongs to the Cruciform style of the Armenian churches with an external rectangular shape. The belfry is located at the top of the main entrance on the western side of the building. The church is topped with a large dome at the center surrounded with 2 minor domes. Unlike other Armenian churches, the altar at the Holy Mother of God is unique for its multi-iconic decoration. The church remained active during the Soviet years. After the

1988 Armenian earthquake The 1988 Armenian earthquake, also known as the Spitak earthquake ( hy, Սպիտակի երկրաշարժ, ), occurred on December 7 at with a surface wave magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum MSK intensity of X (''Devastating''). The shock occurre ...

, the two minor domes fell down and they were replaced with new ones. The fallen domes are currently placed in the church yard.

Gallery

File:Church 7 Wounds.JPG, The church along with the fallen domes File:Գյումրիի Սուրբ Յոթ Վերք եկեղեցի 28.JPG, The church as seen from the square File:Yot Verqi xorani patkerakal 01.jpg, The altar

References

External links

About Saint Astvatsatsin Church in Gyumri
{{Dioceses of the Armenian Apostolic Church Buildings and structures in Gyumri Churches completed in 1884 Tourist attractions in Shirak Province