Big Cascade in Yerevan (Armenia) – description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.
Today’s Yerevan is simply impossible to imagine without its main attraction – the Cascade. It is a systematically ordered and artistically decorated staircases, sculptures, fountains, flower gardens on the slopes of Kanaker hills, which on the whole is a monumental structure of architecture that adorns the city.
The cascade, located behind the Opera and Ballet Theater, between Mesrop Mashtots Avenue and Baghramyan and Moskovyan Streets, originates in a small square where a monument to the architect Tamanyan, who was thinking about the main plan in his life, was erected. The purpose of the pompous staircase of milky tuff was to connect the lower and upper city, located high in the mountains.
If you climb to the top of the Cascade, from the observation deck of Victory Park you can enjoy breathtaking, fantastic views of Yerevan against the background of the Great and Small Ararat Mountains.
Genre affiliation of the Cascade is difficult to determine. But the fact that this original architectural composition is an ornament of the city is beyond doubt! The Great Cascade is like a huge tiered Babylonian pyramid, at the very top of which is an obelisk of Renewed Armenia with decorations based on Urartian motifs.
The Great Cascade is like a huge tiered Babylonian pyramid, at the very top of which is an obelisk of Renewed Armenia with decorations based on Urartian motifs.
The construction of the Cascade began in the 1970s to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of Soviet power in Armenia. But, as in many Soviet construction sites at that time, work was halted due to the collapse of the Soviet Union. For a long time Cascade was in a frozen state. And then it was bought by Gerard Gafeschian, a U.S. philanthropist with Armenian roots. That was a salvation, and the work began boiling over again. Gerard decided that the Cascade would be an art gallery with exhibited works of ancient sculptors from all over the world inside the rooms equipped under the fountains and stairs. And outside the Cascade should be decorated with works of our contemporaries. Also in his plans was to create a museum of contemporary art. Today, the Cascade has already installed some interesting contemporary works by Fernando Botero (“Black Cat”), a famous sculptor and artist from South America.
Such a uniquely stunning structure is hard to find anywhere else. The very name of this spectacular giant monument with huge stairways going up the slope, flowerbeds, beautiful fountains and night illumination reflects its essence. The Grand Cascade is also an adjacent park. The length of Cascade is 500 m, width – 50 m, and between the base and the top (height difference) – 100 m. Inside the Cascade there is an escalator for two-thirds of its height, which will facilitate climbing the stairs.
The exterior design of the Grand Cascade reflects the ancient history of Yerevan. The decorations of the fountains and various statues and obelisks contain ornaments that relate to the ancient state of Urartu.
Unusual and original architectural solutions were applied to the Cascade, included in the Gafesjian Center for the Arts. For example, water falls from pipes, forming various patterns of traditional symbols of Armenia.
It is impossible to describe in words all the beauty and grandeur of this structure. The Grand Cascade of Yerevan, which was completed in 2009, is a central and favorite place for city residents and guests of Yerevan.
How to get to Cascade in Yerevan
The cascade starts from Tamanyan Street.
