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THE SERBIAN CHURCH
The map drawn by Emeric Rutkay in the first half of the 18th century indicates some buildings,
part of which have disappeared in time because of the development of the town. One of the buildings
indicated on Emeric Rutkay's map, is the building the people of Arad use to call "THE SERBIAN CHURCH".
This monument of religious architecture is the oldest building of our town.
The patrons of the church are Saints Peter and Paul. Captain Tekelia and his border guard founded it.
It was erected between 1698 - 1702 in a rectangular shape with an apse in decors and a bell tower in its longitudinal axle.
A small church porch was placed both on the Northern and Southern sides of the church. The building
materials used included stones bound with mortar, burnt bricks for the tower, and tiles and plates
for the roof.
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The altar has a half-circular shape and two niches on the Southern and Northern sides. The church
suffered alterations between 1790-1822, which changed its original form to a Baroque style. The tower,
which was re-erected in 1822, has a square shape richly adorned in Baroque style, is covered by plate
and ends in a globe covered by gold. Serbian masters from the Alexici family painted the church.
Nicolae Alexici painted the iconostasis in 1863 and the vault between 1845-1848. Nicolae Alexici's
son, Stefan Alexici, restored the vault in 1902.
The church is foreseen with a half cylindrical arch, and, in the naos, it has three pairs of pilasters.
The floor of the church is made of polished stone. In front of the altar, there is a plate of marble,
which covers the crypt of the Tekelia family, placed here in 1960. Outside, the church has the apse
of the altar, a half-circular shape, and some funeral tombs carved in the walls. The facades have
decorated windows. The church can be entered through doors placed on the Southern, Northern and Western
sides.
The church has a collection of books and documents about the settlement in Arad. We can also find the
colours of the members of the corporation and some of the border guardians of 1702-1751. Because of its
architectonic aspect, it dominates one of the oldest suburbs of the town, which was founded before this
church.
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© 2009, ALIAS Com & Primăria Arad, All Rights Reserved