The St. Thaddeus Church, Armenian Apostolic church in Masis, Armenia.
St. Thaddeus Church is an Armenian Apostolic place of worship in Masis built with a distinctive dome design supported by semi-crossing arches. The structure rises prominently with traditional Armenian stonework in warm reddish tones.
Construction of the church began in 2003 following a ground blessing ceremony held in 1991, with the building completed and consecrated in 2015. The project emerged from plans to establish a major religious landmark in the region.
The church is named after the Apostle St. Thaddeus, who brought Christianity to Armenia. In the yard, a khachkar carved from a single block of tuff by Artak Hambardzumyan in 2016 commemorates the 1.5 million canonized martyrs of the Armenian Genocide. A memorial fountain honors philanthropist Hrant Vardanyan, whose sons Mikayel and Karen completed the church in 2015.
The candle-lighting hall stands directly at the church entrance, and the memorial fountain for Hrant Vardanyan is in the yard. The church lies in Masis, Ararat Province, and the surrounding wall carries 33 engraved biblical commandments. Visitors reach the site on foot within the town.
The architects were Artur and Anahit Tarkhanyan, and the interior plan is drawn from two intersecting squares standing for eternity and purity of faith. The cladding shifts from lighter tones at the centre to darker ones toward the dome, and from base to top. The building is triple-stepped, with the dome carried on semi-crossing arches.
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