Historic places in Yerevan

Historic places in Yerevan

1. See

   2,750 fountains of Shahumyan Park

   When Yerevan celebrated its 2,750th birthday, this park opened a water feature with a fountain for each year of Yerevan's history.

2. See

   Armenian Railways Museum

   Museum of Railway Transport of Armenia

   Presents the history of the Armenian railway, from 1895. Exhibits are labelled in Armenian and Russian, but not English. Several large exhibits are in an adjacent garden, accessible from the museum. A steam locomotive and carriage stand in the station, and are accessed by crossing the tracks at the Yerevan end of the platforms.

   Closed Mondays·Free

3. See

   Cafesjian Museum of Modern Art

   Cafesjian Centre for the Arts

   A modern art museum, housing the collection of Gerard Cafesjian. It has Arshile Gorky, Andy Warhol, Marc Chagall and other big names on display. The collection is very rich in Glass Art, has many pieces of the Libenský-Brychtová couple, including specially made 'For Armenia' series. Special galleries display monumental tryptichons or reliefs focusing on Armenian history. Entry can be made at any level, but information desk, shop, study center and facilities are at the bottom. In front of the cascades, there is a sculpture park with some Boteros and other plastics.

   Escalators gallery daily 08:00-20:00; special galleries Fri-Sun 10:00-20:00·Free

4. See

   Cascade Memorial to the Victims of Soviet Repression

   Cascade Memorial

   Monument dedicated to the memory of the victims of Soviet-era murders and deportations, atop the Yerevan Cascade, next to the obelisk that commemorates 50 years of Soviet Armenia. The Cascade Memorial was designed by Jim Torosyan, Yerevan's chief architect between 1971 and 1981, and was constructed in the late 1980s and completed around 2008. Inside the large concrete structure, a memorial slab has the inscription of "To All Your Souls on Fire", from the "Frenzied Masses" poem by Yeghishe Charents who himself fell victim to the repressions in 1937. So far, this monument often has been neglected, but it connects to a major part of Armenia's recent history.

5. See

   Erebuni Museum of History

   Էրեբունու թանգարան

   The museum stands at the foot of the Arin Berd hill, on top of which the Urartian Fortress Erebouni has stood since 782 BCE. The City-Fortress was excavated, some parts of the structure were reinforced and restored, and the fortress was turned into an outdoor museum. The city was built by Argishti I the King of Urartu in 782 BCE. The temple of God Khaldi occupied an important place in the fortress. The walls of the temple were decorated with numerous frescos. The museum houses 12,235 exhibits. It has two branches in Shengavit and Karmir Blur with 5,288 and 1,620 exhibits respectively in stock.

   Tue-Sun 10:30-16:30·1,000 dram for museum and site; 500 dram for site only. Tour in foreign language 2,500 dram

6. See

   History Museum of Armenia

   A roundup of the nation's history from early settlements to the 20th century. Lots of archaeological exhibits and pieces of art give an impression of each period. If you would like to move along the timeline then start at the top of the building. The early periods are amply annotated, but the English (and Russian) tags thin out considerably by mid-19th century, reappear in the exhibit dedicated to the Great Catastrophe of 1915 (though it's very disturbing even without a single word), and are missing completely for the Soviet era, so if you're interested in the more modern history of the country and don't speak Armenian, a guided tour may be advisable. A "strictly no photography" policy applies. As of October 2022, the majority of the exhibition is under renovation and according to staff, this will hopefully be finished in 2023. For this time, the price is reduced to 1,000 dram.

   Tue-Sat 11:00-18:00, Sun 11:00-17:00·2,000 dram, usual discounts apply

7. See

   Katoghike

   Holy Mother of God Kathoghike Church, Սուրբ Աստվածածին Կաթողիկէ Եկեղեցի

   A tiny structure constructed in typical Armenian style. Katoghike means "cathedral"; the reason for the incongruity is that the original 13th century church had a much larger basilica attached to it in the 17th century - but that addition was demolished in 1936. In 2015 a new and much larger separate church was built next to Kathoghike, the cream colored St. Anna church.

8. See

   Matenadaran

   Houses the world's largest collection of Armenian illuminated manuscripts, and one of the largest such collections of any kind in the world. A display room has a sampling of some of the finest works, and the additional cost of the guided tour is worthwhile. The building is dug into the hill and can withstand a nuclear attack. The white stone statue in front is of Mesrop Mashtots, teaching the Armenian alphabet, his invention, to a rapt disciple (Koryun, Armenia's first historian and biographer), and looking down at the street of his name.

9. See

   Museum of Woodwork

   Houses some artifacts of Armenian historical wood carving culture (doors, furniture and the like), and wood-based sculptures by modern day artists.

10. See

    Saint Sarkis Cathedral

    From the Victory Bridge (or alternatively the Brandy Factory building) there is a beautiful view on the church and surroundings (structures of different shades constructed in immediate proximity to the church during the Soviet years of forced secularisation). The church is always crowded. Usually there are also many young people as St Sargis (or St Sergius in Western churches) is the patron saint of young people and of lovers.

11. See

    St Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral

    Completed in 2001 to commemorate the 1700th anniversary of Armenia as a Christian nation. The holy relics of St Gregory the Armenian were given back to the Armenian Church by the Vatican in 2001 and placed in this cathedral. The building is a megalomaniacal exaggeration of traditional Armenian Church Architecture. As opposed to all other churches in Yerevan (and Armenia) the cathedral is full of light and does not carry any stand for candles. The candle-house is a separate structure next door. However, the complex is vastly and visibly unfinished.

12. See

    The National Art Gallery

    Founded in 1921, the Gallery preserves more than 42,000 works of Armenian and international fine art and decorative-applied arts. Its collections include masterpieces by world-renowned artists such as Hovhannes Aivazovsky, Vardges Sureniants, Arshile Gorky, Marc Chagall, Wassily Kandinsky, Donatello, Tintoretto, and many others. The Gallery also preservs unique fragments of medieval Armenian church frescoes from Armenia and Armenian cultural centers abroad. Features several floors full of mostly paintings, organized by their country of origin. The Armenian collection is the best and of very high quality, the Russian is quite good, and art lovers will enjoy the European collection as well.

    Tue-Sat 11:00-18:00, Sun 11:00-17:00·1,500 dram

13. See

    The Yerevan History Museum

    Presents all periods of the life in Yerevan starting from paleolithic settlements (50,000 years) to modern days. Ancient maps and the pictures of the lost city, pre-Soviet Erivan, are of special interest. Lift and sloping floors for people who use wheelchairs.

    Mon–Sat 11:00–17:30·400 dram. Tour in Russian, English, French, German 3,000 dram

14. See

    Yerevan City Hall

    The city's administration is housed in this massive five-story building. Construction started during Soviet times, was halted in 1991 for over a decade and the building was finally completed in 2004. The Yerevan History Museum is attached to it.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Yerevan (CC BY-SA 4.0).