Mechitaristenkirche - Neustiftgasse 4

Charming church

One of the most interesting churches in Vienna. The Order of Mechitarists (Armenian Uniate Church) came to the church. Józef II for permission to build a church and monastery in Vienna. Joseph II allowed the construction of a new church on the condition that it will be built in the existing church. And so the Mechitarist church was created. Joseph II cassette church goods and did not allow the construction of new churches at all - he even changed the existing buildings for other purposes. The Mechitarist Monastery is also known for another matter, namely its printing house boasted having fonts of all written languages ​​of the world.

The church, consecrated in 1874, is hardly noticed - traffic rushes past it and hardly anyone takes the time to pause for a moment. Camillo Sitte is responsible for the building in the neo-renaissance style. In the chapel to the right of the second yoke, the miraculous image of Mary, Mother of Beautiful Love (probably from the 17th century) is very noteworthy. If the church is locked, you can ask for admission around the corner at the gate of the Mechitarist monastery.

I always prepare each trip in advance: I study the sources, draw up a route, choose the places I want to visit. This allows you to save time and consider architectural objects consciously. So I also planned out my next trip to Vienna. One of the main points where I really wanted to go was the Armenian monastery of the Mkhitarists. The monastery itself is located in the center of Vienna, not far from the Parliament, two minutes walk from Volkstheater. It is known that in 1773 part of the fathers of the Armenian Order of the Mkhitarists separated from the community of San Lazzaro (Venice) and settled in Trieste, where they founded a new monastery. But, as a result of the French occupation of the city in 1797-1805, the Mkhitarian monks, being subjects of the Hapsburg Empire, took refuge in Vienna, where in 1810 they founded a new monastery. The monastery was located in the buildings belonging to the Order of the Capuchins. In 1837 the monastery was rebuilt, and the church itself in the general architectural complex was built only in 1874. Over time, both Mkhitarian monasteries - in Venice and Vienna - began to play a huge role in the preservation and development of Armenian culture. Today the monastery has a rich numismatic collection (more than 30,000 coins), ceramics, carpets and other items, mainly of Armenian origin. The gallery of the monastery contains valuable paintings by Armenian artists, among which there is a painting by Aivazovsky. Of particular uniqueness is the monastery library, in which there are more than 2,800 Armenian manuscripts and more than 170,000 volumes of ancient and modern Armenian printed works. The library also contains the largest collection of Armenian newspapers and magazines. Agree - it is just a storehouse for any researcher! Also in the monastery since 1889, a rare liqueur is produced, the recipe of which was brought from Constantinople by the founder of the order, Mkhitar of Sebaste. It should be noted that the Austrians are so respectful of the activities of the order that the street to which their monastery adjoins was named in their honor - Mehitaristengasse.