Restoration work has finally begun on the 508-year-old St. Sarkis Armenian Church in Turkey’s southeastern province of Diyarbekir, historically known to Armenians as Dikranagerd, reports Agos.
This church has been gradually deteriorating over the years due to the absence of a congregation and significant damage sustained from the twin earthquakes in February 2023. It is situated in the Sur district and is owned by the Surp Giragos Armenian Church Foundation.
Previously utilized as a vocational school during the Ottoman Empire, St. Sarkis Church fell into disuse after the Armenian Genocide in 1915 and has since been in a state of ruin. Despite this, it remains one of the city’s important registered historical structures, noted for its surviving architectural features, including historical columns.
The Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism has allocated 5 million Turkish lira ($152,000) for the restoration project, although an additional $2 million is required to complete the efforts.
The restoration kickoff was marked by a prayer led by Turkey’s Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, Archbishop Sahag II Mashalian. It was attended by community members, including Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality Co-Mayor DoÄŸan Hatun and Sur Municipality Co-Mayor Gulan Fatma Ã-nkol. The Archbishop, emphasizing the church’s significance, appealed for further assistance and acknowledged the church’s historical importance within the community.
During the program, Archbishop Sahag II Mashalian said: “Christians have had a church for over 500 years. In the last century, the church was abandoned and became like this. It was both heartbreaking for us and not something to be proud of for the people of Diyarbakır. There are wrongs in history that need to be repaired. One of these is to reveal the traces of civilization in these lands. Bringing more accurate, more realistic light to the history of this country is an important step. In ancient times, the quality of a civilization was measured by the beauty of temples and tombs. Armenians from Diyarbakir somehow did this. Surp Giragos Church continues to be the largest Armenian church in the Middle East, this church is no less than that. However, it was abandoned due to the painful events and migration a century ago, but thank God, it is under the control of the Surp Giragos Church Foundation.”
The Archbishop thanked Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism for the restoration of the church and said: “Every time we came here, we saw and appreciated the concern and effort from the authorities to raise and revitalize this church. It will be Diyarbakır’s honor to raise this church. This planning had been going on for a long time. After the necessary planning is made by the Governorship, we can start this work with the funds allocated by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. We would like to express our gratitude to our Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and the Ministry staff.”
Egun Ayik, President of the Surp Giragos Armenian Church Foundation, mentioned that after restoration, the church area would include eight guesthouses, a conference hall, a priest’s house, and three workshops. He said, “We will complete the project with the financial support of the governorship and ministries, along with domestic and international communities and philanthropists.”
Many churches, monasteries, and cemeteries have been destroyed in Turkey or converted to mosques and barns over the past several decades.
