UNIQUE PLACES

Republic Square is the central city square of Yerevan and it is one of the main architectural complexes of the capital.

Republic square is the heart of Yerevan, the base of the General Plan of Yerevan designed in 1924-1936 by architect Alexander Tamanyan. It is situated in the center of Yerevan, in the junction joining Abovyan, Nalbandyan, Amiryan, V.Sargsyan streets and Tigran Mets avenue.

During the Soviet era, Republic Square was named after Lenin. The statue of Lenin (sculptor S. Mercurov, architects N. Paremuzova, L. Vardanov) used to be erected in the southern part of the square, which was dismantled in 1991.

The architectural complex of the square includes the buildings of the History Museum of Armenia, the Government of the Republic of Armenia, the Central Post Office of the Republic of Armenia, the Marriott Armenia Hotel, the former Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Energy. The major buildings are built in pink and yellow tuff in the neoclassical style with extensive use of Armenian motifs. The construction of the four main buildings took place in 1926-1958. The architect of the government house was Al.Tamanyan said. After his death, in 1936-1952, the work was completed by his son, G. Tamanyan. Mark Grigoryan and Edward Sarapyan are the designers of the Hotel and Post Office buildings. The buildings of the RA Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Energy and Territorial Administration were designed by Samvel Safaryan and Varazdat Arshatyan. The final appearance of the building of the Historical Museum of Armenia and the National Gallery of Armenia was acquired in 1975. They were designed by the architect Mark Grigoryan.

The main clock of Yerevan is also located in the Republic Square, on the tower of the Government building, it was installed in 1941. The diameter of the watch is 3 m 60 cm, the big hand with a length of 170 cm weighs 4 kg 850 g, and the small hand with a length of 110 cm weighs 3 kg 500 g. The clock was placed on the tower by Artsrun Yavroyan - the first watchmaker of the clock. The Republic Square clock was technically changed only once in 2001, when its mechanical part was replaced by an electronic one.

The central singing fountains of Yerevan are situated in Republic square and they were designed by architect A. Tamanyan in 1939, but they were constructed only in 1955 by architect E.Sarapyan's draft, and in 1970 and 1988 they were turned into colorful singing fountains. The fountains were renovated in 2007, equipped with computer-controlled lighting and sound equipment, and in September 2011 new fountains were built and modernized.

Nowadays, the square has an oval form and the square part with the fountains and the basin is adjacent to it. The architectural style of the House of Government had decisive influence on the creation of the decorative image of the square complex and it determined the proportions of the volumes of the square, the height of the buildings. Flexible arches, national ornaments and pale pink palette prevail in the square.

Republic Square is one of the favorite places of entertainment. Outdoor concerts are often held here, which usually end with magnificent fireworks. Every year the biggest main Christmas tree of the republic is erected in the Republic Square and a festive event is organized on New Year's night.