IRAN’S NATIONAL HERITAGE "ST. THADDEUS CHURCH" FILE ACCEPTED BY UNESCO

Persian Journal, Iran
April 9 2007

The dossier of the Church of Saint Thaddeus, locally known as Qara
Kelisa in the Iranian northwestern province of West Azarbaijan,
which was prepared by experts of Iran’s Cultural Heritage and Tourism
Organization (ICHTO) in an attempt to inscribe this ancient monument
in UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites in 2008 has been accepted
by experts of UNESCO in the initial phase.

Qara Kelisa had previously been put up by Iran for UNESCO world
registration in 2007, however due to lack of substantial documents
including those pertaining to the value of the building and maps of
its precincts, the Organization turned down the application.

Announcing this news, Mohammad Hassan Khademzadeh, head of research
centers of Iran’s Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization in
all Iranian provinces told CHN that the representatives of the
International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) will pay a visit
to this historic church to study its situation in two weeks and then
a team of UNESCO’s experts will come to Iran within a few months in
order to see the condition of Qara Kelisa and the other historical
churches in the province such as St. Stepanous Cathedral in Khoy and
Zoorzoor Church in Chaldoran as annexes to St. Thaddeus Cathedral
for being registered in list of UNESCO’s world heritage sites.

Khademzadeh believes that Iran has made a lot of effort to prepare
all required conditions for St. Thaddeus world registrations and
expressed hope that if nothing extraordinary happens, this ancient
church to be registered as the 9th Iranian historical site in list
of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites.

The Thaddeus Church, locally known as Qara Kelisa or the Black
Church is considered one of the oldest churches in the world, whose
construction began 1700 years ago. Historians believe that the Church
is the tomb of Thaddeus who is said to have been one of Christ’s
disciples who traveled to Armenia, then part of the Persian Empire,
for preaching the teachings of Christ.

Today the church is known as Qara Kelisa and belongs to the Armenian
community of Iran. It has an international reputation and hosts
annual meetings of world Armenians each year in July-August. Enjoying
special features such as antiquity, its unique architectural style,
as well as its religious importance among the world Armenians and the
rituals which are held annually in this church has made Qara Kelisa
worthy for being inscribed in list of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.