Surp Hagop Armenian Church, Aleppo

It stands on al-Iman street in the Old Syriac Quarter. The quarter is named for the Syriacs, but its streets never belonged to one community alone: the church of the Armenians who settled here after 1915 sits on the same line. Surp Hagop is a small Armenian Apostolic church, and it does not hide how small it is.

Getting there

Come out onto al-Iman street from inside the Old Syriac Quarter. The Church of Mar Girgis is in the same quarter, and seeing both shows the two faces of the neighbourhood at once.

How long it takes

Twenty minutes. One hall and a small yard; there is nothing else to walk through.

What to see

The ground was blessed on 3 June 1934, under Ardavazt Surmeyan, Armenian archbishop of Beroea, the old name of Aleppo. The plot, some 750 square metres, was donated by Georgio Marcopolli, the Italian consul general in Aleppo. Building only began in 1940, and with a small structure; the church was consecrated in 1943 at a ceremony attended by the leaders of the community. It takes its name from Saint Jacob of Nisibis. Its present shape dates from the major enlargement of 1962.

Don’t miss

The missing dome and belfry. Coming here after the cathedrals of Aleppo puts the scale back in place: a barrel-vaulted roof, a small yard around it, and eighty years without a dome. This is exactly what a parish church means.

How it stands now

The Armenian prelacy of Beroea rebuilt the church in 1988 and 1989. The congregation is small, so the door is not open at every hour; asking for the service time before you set out is the practical route.