Saint Elias Cathedral
History
Prior to the current building of the cathedral, a small church from the 15th century has occupied the same area. The old church was mentioned by the Italian explorer Pietro Della Valle who visited Aleppo in 1625 and described it as one of the four churches that were built adjacent to each other in one yard with one gate, in the newly created Jdeydeh, the Christian quarter. The other three churches are the Forty Martyrs Armenian Church, the Holy Mother of God Armenian Church (the current Zarehian Treasury) and the Greek Orthodox Church of the Dormition of Our Lady.
The new building of the cathedral was completed in 1873. It has two magnificent belfries at its façade, while the marble entrance with yellow columns is situated under the high dome on the eastern side.
In 1914, during the period of Archbishop Michael Akhras, the dome was entirely renovated. For that purpose, concrete was used during the reconstruction process for the first time ever in the construction history of Aleppo, with the assistance of experts from Belgium. During the same period, the chiming clock that plays Ave Maria every fifteen minutes, has been placed on the tower.
In front of the main gate, the statue of Archbishop and poet Germanos Farhat (1670–1732) was erected in 1932 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of his death, and for his efforts in founding the Maronite library of Aleppo, the home of old valuable manuscripts. Since then, the surrounding area of the cathedral was called Farhat square.
Saint Elijah Cathedral was heavily damaged during the Syrian civil war with its roof collapsing in 2013 after numerous explosions. The cathedral reopened officially and was re-constructed in July 2020 after a multi year program of restoration and renovation.
See also
References
- ^ Church of the Dormition of Our Lady: the crown of Aleppo
- ^ "Qenshrin Churches & Monasteries Encyclopedia: Saint Elias Cathedral" (in Arabic).
- ^ Bob Fredericks (2016-12-26). "Syrians celebrate Christmas amid Aleppo cathedral ruins". New York Post. Archived from the original on 2016-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
- ^ Smith, Mike (25 December 2016). "Religious leaders strike somber note on Christmas". www.timesofisrael.com. Archived from the original on 2016-12-26. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
- ^ "Cathedral reopens in Syria: 'a sign of hope and rebirth' - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va. 2020-07-21. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
- ^ "Reopening of ancient cathedral a silver lining for Syria's Christians". Crux. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
- ^ "Syria: Reconstruction of the Maronite Cathedral of Saint Elijah in Aleppo |". Œuvre d'Orient - au service des chrétiens d'Orient. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
