Historic Surp Garabet Church to be auctioned

The 19th century Surp Garabet Church will be sold at auction.

Surp Garabet Church is located in the Hafik district of Sivas.

Another name of the church, which was used in various ways by the village residents for a period of time, is Tuzhisar Church.

The owner of the church, which appears as a haystack in the land registry records, appears as Hatice Akay.

The church used by Armenians living in Hafik was registered as the Historical Tuzhisar Church.

Hatice Akay had previously put the historical building up for sale for 16 million TL.

Abdulvahap Yıldız, a real estate consultant who gave information about the church, said, “There was an excessive demand after we offered the church for sale, but since it has a historical structure, we plan to offer it for sale through an auction since there will be a restoration inside. We had many meetings abroad and through the managers of famous artists. We are still in the negotiation stage,” he said.

Stating that the church needs to be restored, Yıldız said, “Since this church has served as a place of worship for years, we want to give this building to a valuable person. We are striving to give it to someone who will know the value of this place, who can contribute and really restore it. The auction will be held in the presence of a notary and on the basis of confidentiality. It will start at 5 million TL and our bids will be 100 thousand TL. This place can also be used as a place of worship, but we really want it to be in the hands of someone who will protect this culture.”

Surp Garabed Church measures 13.7 meters by 20.20 meters inside. Although it appears to have been built entirely of cut stone, it is actually a masonry structure with only the interior and exterior parts having been repaired.

The church is of 18th century architecture. It has a 1.40 meter thick body wall and the barrel vaults covering the rectangular planned building are made of cut stones. It is covered with corrugated tiles over the soil. Tuzhisar Church was registered as a historical monument with the decision dated 16.04.1987 and numbered 3101.

Source: DHA/IHA