Ukraine, Chernivtsi. Armenian Catholic Church Of The Holy Apostles Peter And Paul Stock Photography

The photo shows the church of the Armenian Catholics. It was built in style combining byzantine, romanesque and gothic elements, most likely by the architect Josef Hlavka, and consecrated in 1875 to the Apostles Peter an Paul. nThe oldest Armenian settlements in the southern Bukowina date back to the 14th c. After the annexation of the Bukowina by Austria in 1774, Catholic Armenians Uniates moved in from the Galician capital of L’viv Lemberg which was home to an old and significant Armenian community. An Amenian-Catholic parish was founded in 1836. The church on the photo was built in a time when the Armenian community was not only very small but almost entirely assimilated to the Polish community of Chernivtsi. In 1910 Chernivtsi was home to 311 Armenian Catholics and 31 Armenian Orthodox. Among them were wealthy and well respected merchants and landowners. The church was the only place to cultivate and remember on own Armenian traditions and identity. It was used as a warehouse in Soviet times and serves as a concert hall today