Holly Echmiadzin, Zvartnots & Museum Treasures of Echmiadzin

During this tour, we will visit: - St. Echmiadzin Mother Cathedral - the most ancient Christian temple of Armenia, one of the first in the entire Christian world. As the legend says, the first stone of the temple was laid between 301 and 303 A.D. by St. Gregory the Illuminator, the first Catholicos of the Armenian Church. In 2001, when Armenia celebrated the 1700th anniversary of the adoption of Christianity, Pope John Paul II brought the relics of the first Armenian Catholicos to Echmiadzin. - Museum-treasure-house of Echmiadzin to see the Holy Lance with which Jesus Christ was injured and the miraculously preserved piece of Noah's Ark. - Church of St. Hripsime (7th c.) - Ruins of the temple Zvartnots. The temple was erected as early as the 7th century. Like most of the ancient structures of Armenia, Zvartnots reached the present time in ruins and remained buried until its remains were uncovered at the beginning of the 20th century. Zvartnots is of great value not only for Armenians but also for international society, as it is inscribed in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site.