1991 Holy Etchmiadzin Christmas Card, Signed

A formal Christmas greeting card issued by the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin for the Nativity of 1991, bearing the pontifical seal and bilingual Armenian inscription Մայր Աթոռ Սուրբ Էջմիածին on the cream cover. The interior features a hand-lettered Armenian blessing in blue and red ink with an illuminated initial column in the Armenian manuscript tradition, alongside a color reproduction of a Nativity scene from a 13th-century Armenian Gospel — "Evangile Arménien XIII S." — dense with angels, shepherds, and the manger scene rendered in the jewel-toned flat style of medieval Armenian illumination. Signed by Vazgen I himself, dated 1991.

The year matters. Vazgen I signed this card as Armenia was in the final weeks of Soviet rule — independence had been declared in September, the USSR would dissolve by December. The man who had spent 36 years protecting an ancient church inside an atheist state lived just long enough to see his people free. He died in 1994.

Good vintage condition. Some ink scribble to cover verso, else clean. Interior vivid with bright ink and clear reproduction.