Like a plot from an Indiana Jones movie, European archeologists have uncovered what they believe to be one of the oldest Christian churches in the world, a discovery nearly six years in the making.
The discovery was made in Armenia, which was the first Christian state in the world.
The remains of the ancient Christian building were found at the Artaxata site in the Ararat Plain. Excavators have been digging there since 2018, but didn’t find the remains until recently.
Archaeologists discover Armenia’s oldest churchhttps://t.co/UwR5lAKJUC pic.twitter.com/stgNkbiL0p
— ARMENPRESS News (@armenpress) October 12, 2024
“The find consists of an octagonal building with cruciform extensions,” the University of Münster explained. “The team excavated parts of the church and studied it using geophysical methods.”
“Typologically, the find corresponds to early Christian memorial buildings,” the press release continued. “In the cross-shaped extensions, the researchers discovered the remains of wooden platforms, which were radiocarbon dated to the mid-4th century AD”
The oldest Christian church buildings date back to the third and fourth centuries.
The octagonal church at Artaxata had a floor made of mortar and terracotta tiles, and measured around 100 feet in diameter.
There were also some fragments of marble imported from the Mediterranean, which indicate the church was “lavishly decorated,” experts say.
“The 4th century building is the oldest archaeologically documented church in the country – sensational evidence for early Christianity in Armenia,” University of Münster Professor Achim Lichtenberger said in a statement.