page_title: Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church
section_title: Reconstruction
hierarchical_section_title: Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church / Reconstruction
caption_attribution_description: Հայերեն: ԵԿԵՂԵՑԻ ՄԵՍՐՈՊ ՄԱՇՏՈՑ (1875 թ.), Եկեղեցում գտնվում է մուտքը դեպի Մեսրոպ Մաշտոցի դամբարանը (442-443 թթ.)English: Mesrop Mashtots Church (1875), Iinside the Church is the entrance to the tomb of Mesrop Mashtots (442-443)Русский: Храм Месропа Маштоца (1875г.). Внутри храма находится вход в усыпальницу Месропа Маштоца (442-443гг.) This is a photo of a monument in Armenia identified by the ID 2.113/22
context_page_description: Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church is an Armenian Apostolic church in Oshakan that contains the grave of Mesrop Mashtots, the inventor of the Armenian alphabet. It is one of Armenia's better known churches and a pilgrimage site. Pilgrims visit the church on the Feast of the Holy Translators in October.
  Mashtots was buried at the site in 440, where a martyrium was built three years later. The current church dates to 1873–79, when an entirely new building was built on the grave of Mashtots, located under the altar. It has been the seat of the Diocese of Aragatsotn since 1996.
context_section_description: Catholicos Gevorg IV began reconstruction efforts in 1868. He successfully raised funds to reconstruct the church. In 1872 he officially called upon the Armenian people to support the cause in a kondak (proclamation or encyclical). Reconstruction works began in the spring of 1873 and were completed in 1879. The church was built by Greek workmen from Alexandropol. The new church was consecrated on October 21, 1879. The new church is a vaulted basilica built in black tuff. It has three entrances on the north, south, and west and eleven windows, not including the smaller windows on bell-tower. It has a capacity of 800 people. Acharian described it as a "mid-sized building, much more beautiful than usual rural churches, but lesser than churches of large cities."
  The grave of Mashtots is located in a cell under the main altar. In 1884 a new marble gravestone was erected on the grave of Mashtots, inside the church, through the funds of Archbishop Andreas, primate of the Artsakh Diocese. It was replaced with an Italian marble gravestone in 1962 that reads: Saint Mesrop Mashtots 361-440 (ՍՈՒՐԲ ՄԵՍՐՈՊ ՄԱՇՏՈՑ 361 ✝ 440). 
  A cylindrical bell-tower was added in 1884 on the eastern side of the church, crowned by a rotunda with eight columns. For its location on the eastern (as opposed to the usual western end) and cylindrical design, it is a rare example in Armenian architecture. 
  In 1880 a memorial was erected on the grave of Vahan Amatuni just outside the church.
caption: The bell tower of the church
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