UNESCO Churches of St. Hripsime, St. Gayane and St. Shogahat

Besides the Mother Cathedral there are also three other churches of UNESCO World Heritage in Vagharshapat. 

St. Hripsime
The most notable of which is Surp Hripsime, built in 618 as a replacement for an earlier chapel on the site where St Hripsime was slain after she refused to marry the pagan King Trdat III, choosing instead to stay true to her faith (she was a Roman nun who had earlier fled here to escape marriage to the Roman emperor Diocletian). The small chamber at the back of this church has a niche that contains a few of the rocks purportedly used to stone Hripsime to death. The church is located on the main highway near the entrance to town (near the bypass).

St. Gayane
The 2nd church is Surp Gayane, who was the prioress of the 32 virtuous maidens who accompanied St Hripsime to Armenia. The original 5th-century chapel over her grave was rebuilt as a church in 1630. It's a fine orange-toned building with a plain interior and some fine khachkars in its grounds.

St. Shogahat
Less interesting but still worth a visit is Surp Shogahat, a sturdy stone structure with simple, elegant lines. It was rebuilt on the foundations of a chapel to one of the companions of Hripsime and Gayane.