Archaeologists discover one of the oldest Christian churches in the world

In a press release published last Friday in collaboration with the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, the University of Münster (Germany) announced the discovery of one of the oldest Christian churches in the world. According to Fox News, this building would be located on the site of Artaxata, in the Ararat plain.

A “sumptuously decorated” building

Researchers have been carrying out archaeological excavations in this area of ​​the west of the country for six years now. According to them, the unearthed church would be an “octagonal building” of around thirty meters in diameter “with cruciform extensions”. The experts specify in the press release that “geophysical methods” were necessary to study the parts of the building which were excavated.

Fragments of marble imported from the Mediterranean were reportedly found in the ground composed of mortar and terracotta tiles, leading researchers to believe that this religious building had been “sumptuously decorated” around 1,600 years ago.

Use of radiocarbon

From a typological point of view, this exceptional discovery “corresponds to commemorative buildings from the beginning of Christianity”. Thanks to the use of radiocarbon, archaeologists were able to date the remains of the wooden platforms to the middle of the 4th century AD. However, the oldest Christian churches would have actually seen the light of day during the 3rd and 4th centuries. .

This dating is hardly surprising, Armenia being considered one of the cradles of Christianity. The press release also recalls that “according to legend, Gregory the Illuminator converted the Armenian king Tiridates III to Christianity at Artaxata in 301 AD, making Armenia the first Christian state in the world”.