Yereruyk Basilica

Cultural monuments

Yereruyk or Ererouk, is an archeological site characterized by the presence of an ancient Armenian church near the village of Anipemza in the Shirak Province of Armenia. Yererouk was built on a plateau near the Akhurian River which defines the frontier with Turkey, about 5 km southeast of the ancient city of Ani. Because the basilica of Yererouk is one of the earliest surviving Christian monuments in Armenia, it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage 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.

Photo By: Hatis Tour

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