Yererouk ( hy, Երերույքի տաճար, ''Yereruyki tachar''), also Yereruyk or Ererouk, is an archeological site characterized by the presence of an ancient

Armenian church Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

near the village of

Anipemza Anipemza ( hy, Անիպեմզա) is a village and rural community in the Shirak Province of Armenia. The Statistical Committee of Armenia reported its population was 523 in 2010, up from 349 at the 2001 census. Anipemza is located on the closed ...

in the

Shirak Province Shirak ( hy, wikt:Շիրակ, Շիրակ, ) is a provinces of Armenia, province (''Administrative divisions of Armenia, marz'') of Armenia. It is located in the north-west of the country, bordering Turkey to the west and Georgia (country), Geor ...

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 ...

. Yererouk was built on a plateau near the

Akhurian River The Akhuryan ( hy, Ախուրյան ''Axuryan''; xcl, Ախուրեան ''Axurean''; russian: Арпачай or Ахурян), or Arpachay ( tr, Arpaçay) is a river in the South Caucasus. It originates in Armenia and flows from Lake Arpi, alon ...

which defines the frontier with

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, about 5 km southeast of the ancient city of

Ani Ani ( hy, Անի; grc-gre, Ἄνιον, ''Ánion''; la, Abnicum; tr, Ani) is a ruined medieval Armenian city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia. Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the ...

. Because the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

of Yererouk is one of the earliest surviving Christian monuments in Armenia, it was added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

''Tentative List'' on August 25, 1995, in the Cultural category. The basilica is considered one of the ancient examples of Armenian architecture referred to the Paleo-Christian epoch (4th–6th century) even if it was initially started in the 4th century, then was postponed in the 5th century and finally in the 6th century because the basilica isn't mentioned in any source, so the datations are hypothetic. However the most recent studies have analysed the architectural characteristics with the stratigraphic exams, the study of the sculptural decoration and epigraphy, the comparation with similar churches in

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

Etymology and history

''Yererouk'' means ''quivering'' in the

Armenian language Armenian ( classical: , reformed: , , ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is the official language of Armenia. Historically spoken in the Armenian Highlands, today Armenian is widely spoken t ...

. According to popular tradition, the name of the temple was derived from its unique architectural solution of the structure which seems quivering on its 6 columns for viewers from a distance. Yererouk is one of the earliest examples of the Armenian church architecture and one of the greatest structures of the early medieval ages that partly survived. According to

Toros Toramanian Toros Toramanian ( hy, Թորոս Թորամանեան; 1864 – March 1, 1934) was a prominent Armenian architect and architectural historian. He is considered "the father of Armenian architectural historiography." Biography Toramanian was bor ...

, Yererouk is a clear and perhaps the earliest example of the basilica style of the Armenian church buildings that are constructed on pillars. The church was surrounded with thick walls. From the surrounding buildings, underground rooms and the water reservoir, it becomes clear that the church was the centre of a developed residential community. Yererouk dates back to the 4th and 5th centuries. It is located in the Shirak canton of the

Ayrarat Ayrarat () was the central province of the ancient kingdom Armenia, located in the plain of the upper Aras River. Most of the historical capitals of Armenia were located in this province, including Armavir, Yervandashat, Artashat, Vagharshapat ...

province of

Ancient Armenia Ancient Armenia refers to the history of Armenia during Antiquity. It follows Prehistoric Armenia and covers a period of approximately one thousand years, beginning at the end of the Iron Age with the events that led to the dissolution of the King ...

. Not much is known about the founders of the basilica. However, the church was renovated during the 11th century by the efforts of King

Hovhannes-Smbat Hovhannes-Smbat III was Kingdom of Ani, King of Ani (1020–1040). He succeeded his father Gagik I of Armenia, Gagik I of Ani (989–1020) being the king's elder son and legal heir to the throne. Life His enthronement in 1020 was strongl ...

's wife.

The basilica

The building, with three

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...

s, structured with thick lateral walls, is one of the biggest Armenian churches of the period. With arcades on the north, west and south sides, two little

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

s near the

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...

and two absidal niches at the end of the lateral arcades, the basilica in origin could be covered wooden trusses. The north-east chapel keeps the most part of two superimposed vaults which the superior is inclined (taller near the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

). Yererouk Basilica is similar to Syrian basilicas in the architectural system (high angular

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

s protruding on the West facade) and in the sculptural decoration (decorative band on the

window A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent materia ...

s). At the East end of the South facade there is a Greek inscription similar to the one in the Syrian church of Deir Sem'an at the end of the

5th century The 5th century is the time period from 401 ( CDI) through 500 ( D) ''Anno Domini'' (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar. The 5th century is noted for being a period of migration and political instability throughout Eurasia. It saw the ...

. With Tekor (end of the 5th century) and Zvartnots, Yererouk Basilica is one of the rare Armenian churches totally built on a base of 5–6 steps like a

crepidoma Crepidoma is an architectural term for part of the structure of ancient Greek buildings. The crepidoma is the multilevel platform on which the superstructure of the building is erected. The crepidoma usually has three levels. Each level typica ...

. The archeological excavations revealed the lack of a continuous platform under the building which

foundations Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

are directly on rock. The basilica was a

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

ial

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a saf ...

: an inscription on the pilaster at the north-east corner of the

says: "''martyrion'' ..of the

Precursor Precursor or Precursors may refer to: *Precursor (religion), a forerunner, predecessor ** The Precursor, John the Baptist Science and technology * Precursor (bird), a hypothesized genus of fossil birds that was composed of fossilized parts of unr ...

and the

Protomartyr A protomartyr (Koine Greek, ''πρότος'' ''prótos'' "first" + ''μάρτυρας'' ''mártyras'' "martyr") is the first Christian martyr in a country or among a particular group, such as a religious order. Similarly, the phrase the Protom ...

", that are Saint John Baptist and

Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

. Along the south and north sides there are tympanum portals adorned with

dentil A dentil (from Lat. ''dens'', a tooth) is a small block used as a repeating ornament in the bedmould of a cornice. Dentils are found in ancient Greek and Roman architecture, and also in later styles such as Neoclassical, Federal, Georgian Reviv ...

s with inscribed an arch, modeled with a banded cornice based on two columns with acanthus leaves capitals. The west facade is characterized by two windows like the ones on the principal facade, with different decorative elements and, in the high part of the facade, with a three-mullioned window that lights the

. The sculptural decorations, realized with the technique of bass-relief on the

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; from it, architrave "chief beam", also called an epistyle; from Greek ἐπίστυλον ''epistylon'' "door frame") is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can ...

and capitals in the

and on the head of the arcades, give importance to the emblematic and apotropaic motive of the

Maltese cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which developed f ...

(with four identical limbs) inscribed in a medallion, sometimes decorated with

animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...

s and/or

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s. The central crossed medallion is often completed by two lateral medallions made like rose-windows or daisies. The basilica had to be equipped with a painted decoration but now we can see them only on the apse window and on a composition on the west portal

in the south facade.E. Utudjian, ''Armenian Architecture 4th to 17th Century'', Paris, 1967, pag.35

Gallery

File:Երերույքի Տաճար 07.jpg File:Երերույքի Տաճար 03.jpg File:Ереруйк.jpg File:Ereruk.jpg File:Ererouyk.jpg File:Localizzazione Ererouyk e Ani.jpg File:Contestualizzazione dell'Armenia.jpg Inquadramento itinerari armenia ridotta.jpg

References

External links

About Yererouk

{{World Heritage Sites in Armenia 4th century in Armenia 5th century in Armenia Archaeological sites in Armenia 5th-century churches Basilica churches in Armenia Buildings and structures in Shirak Province