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Kanach Zham

Coordinates: 39°45′45″N 46°44′37″E / 39.76250°N 46.74361°E / 39.76250; 46.74361
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Kanach Zham
The church in 2018, two years prior to being damaged after the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war by Azerbaijani authorities.
Religion
AffiliationArmenian Apostolic Church
Location
LocationShusha, Azerbaijan
Kanach Zham is located in Azerbaijan
Kanach Zham
Shown within Azerbaijan
Geographic coordinates39°45′45″N 46°44′37″E / 39.76250°N 46.74361°E / 39.76250; 46.74361
Architecture
StyleArmenian

Saint John the Baptist Church, commonly known as Kanach Zham (Armenian: Կանաչ Ժամ) is an Armenian Apostolic church in Shusha, known to Armenians as Shushi, in Azerbaijan, located just uphill from the Ghazanchetsots Cathedral. Following the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War, there have been claims of its destruction,[1][2] though according to Azerbaijani sources and the Baku Eparchy of the Russian Orthodox Church, the church, which suffered damage during the war, is still standing and undergoing renovation.[3][unreliable source?]

Kanach Zham means "Green Chapel" in Armenian, which refers to the previously green domes of the church. The church is sometimes also called Gharabakhtsots, the name of the old wooden church that was previously located in the same place as Kanach Zham, and which was named as such in honor of the farmers of Nagorno-Karabakh who built it.[4]

History

The church was built in 1818 in the same place as the former Gharabakhtsots wooden church. The church is built according to a unique cruciform scheme, with the eastern facade of the church being adjacent to the western part of the chapel, and the tall dome of the church and its chapel can both be seen clearly from a distance across the town. The interior of the church also has some unique architectural features. Above the entrance to the church, is an inscription from 1847 that says "Babayan Stepanos Hovhannes. In the memory of his deceased brother Mkrtych.".[4][5]

Damage and restoration

In November 2020, Armenian sources stated that the towers of the church had been destroyed by Azerbaijan after the capture of the town in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, referring to pictures and a video circulating online of the partially destroyed church.[6][7] The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church condemned the damage in a statement in November.[8]

In March 2021, satellite images taken on February 15 showed the complete destruction of the church.[9][10][11] An Azerbaijani news agency denied Kanach Zham's destruction, while also denying the church's Armenian heritage. It stated that the church, which had been severely damaged during the war, was undergoing renovation and its dome was being rebuilt.[12] The information about the church's ongoing renovation was later confirmed by the Russian Orthodox Church Eparchy of Baku.[3]

Azerbaijani sources ascribe a Russian provenance to the church, claiming that it was modified according to "Armenianized" style in the 1840s.[3][unreliable source?]

  • The church as seen from afar, in 2018
    The church as seen from afar, in 2018
  • The church in 2010
    The church in 2010
  • Church interior, 2009
    Church interior, 2009
  • The church in 2019
    The church in 2019
  • The church in 1979[13]
    The church in 1979[13]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Saint John the Baptist Church in Şuşa.
  1. ^ "Azeri Vandalism to Armenian Church Incites Plea for Protection". Persecution. 2021-03-29. Retrieved 2021-05-26.
  2. ^ "Awaiting Biden, Armenians Fear Cultural Genocide in Azerbaijan". News & Reporting. Retrieved 2021-05-26.
  3. ^ a b c "Баку объяснил реставрационными работами демонтаж купола храма в Шуше". Caucasian Knot. 2021-05-05.
  4. ^ a b "Kanach Zham Church". 360GreatArmenia.am.
  5. ^ "6 Christian Sites Armenia Fears It Has Lost to Azerbaijan". Christianity Today. 2021-01-05.
  6. ^ "Azeris destroy domes of Armenian church in Karabakh's Shushi". PanArmenian.Net. 2020-11-20.
  7. ^ "Hovhannes Nazaretyan" (2020-11-19). "The Kanach Zham Church in Shushi has been partially destroyed". Fact Investigation Platform (FIP).
  8. ^ Siranush Ghazanchyan (2020-11-19). "Armenian St. John the Baptist church in Shushi vandalized". Public Radio of Armenia (Armradio).
  9. ^ "Conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is far from over". emerging-europe.com. 2021-05-05.
  10. ^ "Fresh Satellite Images Show Azerbaijan's Destruction Of Shushi's Kanach Zham Church". Zartonk Media. 2021-03-17.
  11. ^ "Azeris destroy Armenian church in Karabakh's Shushi". panorama.am. 2021-03-17.
  12. ^ "Православному храму в Шуше возвращается первоначальный облик". Turan Information Agency. 2021-03-19.
  13. ^ Mkrtchian, Shahen. "Շուշիի պատմական հուշարձանները [Shushi's historical monuments]," Ejmiatsin 3 (1979): pp. 50-60.
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