The Armenian community, one of the oldest in Lviv, had formed over a period of many years a centre for its national life in Lviv. Its unique architecture portrays the original spirit of this Eastern Christian culture.

The Armenian community, one of the oldest in Lviv, had formed over a period of many years a centre for its national life in Lviv. Its unique architecture portrays the original spirit of this Eastern Christian culture.

Armenians, driven out of their motherland by the Mongol-Tatar invasion of the mid-13th century and having lost their sovereignty, found hospitable refuge in Halychyna. One of the most ancient Eastern Christian nations (Armenians had accepted Christianity several centuries earlier than European nations), the Armenians brought to Lviv a creative sense of search, their capital, and highly skilled jewellers, leather-dressers, and embroiderers. However, they were most proficient in the field of trading. Trade caravans from eastern countries to Europe were almost entirely under an Armenian monopoly. Armenians not only dealt in direct trade but also acted as interpreters through whom all foreign merchants in Lviv worked.

Each ethnic community occupied its own territory in ancient Lviv. Armenians settled outside the city walls in the northern part, near the central Rynok Square. Here was situated the seat of the Gregorian bishopric, which was subordinate only to the head of the Armenian Church, the Catholicos of all Armenians. The leader (viyt) and the board of elders governed secular life. To settle internal community problems Armenians used their own common law; for example, when an arsonist was caught red-handed, they had the right to throw him into the fire immediately. Armenians possessed their own school, hospitals, a library, and a theatre; the first Armenian printing shop was founded here in 1616. The architecture of the Armenian quarter is characteristic of the traditions of the time; for instance, many houses featured wide gates until the second half of the 18th century. Some of these have been preserved to the present day.

Due to its strong economic position the Armenian community maintained its confidence and managed to withstand the pressure and restrictions imposed by the municipal authorities for a long period of time. This city council, members of which were by-and-large wealthy Roman Catholic merchants, did not easily accept the Armenian competition, envied their wealth and connections with the East.

The Armenians in Lviv, cut off from their motherland, and being trade and business people, could not preserve their identity for long. Assimilation was the only way to retain their property and social status. In 1630 Armenian archbishop Mikolaj Torosowicz adopted Catholicism; however, the Armenian people would not benefit from this act: if in the middle of the 17th century over two thousand Armenians resided in Lviv, at the beginning of the 20th century there were only a few remained. Those who did, became Poles with polonized Armenian surnames. A new wave of Armenians came to Lviv after 1939, as the Russian totalitarian government came to power. Today, this community consists of Armenians who have come from various corners of the former Soviet Union.

The Armenian Cathedral (14-15th centuries) is a unique monument of Eastern culture in Europe. It is a successful architectural combination of various styles: the typical Armenian sanctuary, the Romanesque-Gothic style of Western Europe, and the traditional Ukrainian Halychyna type.

In the 1360s the large Armenian community in Lviv commenced the construction of their grand cathedral. Silesian architect Doring designed a church after the model of a cathedral in Ani – the ancient Armenian capital, which is now on the territory of present-day Turkey. The edifice was built of cut stone and faced with ashlar slabs with walls a metre-and-a-half wide. The structure of the dome is unique – it rests on hollow ribs made of earthenware jugs. The cathedral’s interior portrays an authentic image from the East: stylized Armenian sacrificial crosses carved in stone, called khachkars, which dating back to the 14-15th centuries. In addition, the decorative ensemble includes unique frescos on window posts, fragments of the oldest monumental painting in Lviv, and Modernist mosaics and wall-paintings of the early 20th century. All these aspects create unique forms and colouration, rarely found anywhere else in the world.

The south yard located between the street and the cathedral conveys an inimitable impression: the the 15th century arcaded gallery features European architectural traditions. Here the remains of an ancient Armenian cemetery have been preserved: gravestones, the oldest one being 600 years old, have been transferred from cemeteries of other Armenian churches and monasteries in Lviv. These cemeteries vanished several centuries ago. This cemetery, however, is far from being typical: the cathedral yard is evenly paved with gravestones, and gravestones are also built into the walls. Entering the cathedral yard from the direction of Krakivska Street one can see gravestones of the 16-17th centuries bearing well-preserved inscriptions to the right and to the left of the cathedral. The epitaph for Patriarch Stephan V of Armenia, who died in Lviv in 1551, has been preserved in one of the cathedral’s walls. The full-length figure of the Patriarch was carved in relief by a Lviv craftsman. This gravestone is the oldest one of its kind to have survived to the present day.

Another extraordinary facet of the cathedral complex is the 18th century chapel, which is carved of wood and stands outside in the churchyard. The chapel contains an altar featuring the Passion of Christ on Calvary. The column of St. Christopher, erected in 1726, stands in the eastern cathedral yard. This is also the location of the former Palace of Armenian Archbishops and the Armenian bank (the oldest pawnshop in Lviv). The ornamented stone portal, which has been preserved in the bell tower’s arched entranceway, leads the way to the Armenian court. The northern yard belonged to the monastery of the Armenian Benedictines in the 17th century.

The first liturgy performed in post-totalitarian times took place in the chapel outside the Cathedral on January 7, 2001. Pope John Paul II prayed in the Lviv Armenian Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary on the 25th of June 2001. In May 2003 the entrance in Krakivska street was opened, and at the same time, the Armenian Cathedral was sanctified by the Supreme Patriarch of the Armenian Church, Catholicos of all Armenians Garegin.

Virmenska Street is one of the busiest and most colorful places in Lviv. You can get there via airplane. There are daily flights to Lviv and Kiev from Europe and North America.