History of Khor Virap

Baptism of Tiridates III by St. Gregory.

When King Tiridates III ruled over Armenia, his assistant was the Christian Grigor (Gregory) Lusavorich who preached the Christian religion. However, Tiridates, a pagan was not pleased and he subjected Gregory to severe torture. When news reached the king that Gregory's father Anak the Parthian was responsible for the murder of the king's father, the king ordered that Gregory's hand and legs be tied and that he be thrown into the Khor Virap to die in the dark dungeon located in Artashat. In addition, Gregory’s refusal to offer sacrifice to the goddess Anahita provoked the king to torture him and condemn him to imprisonment in the Khor Virap. He was then forgotten and the King pursued his wars and persecution of Christians. However, Gregory did not die during his 13 years of imprisonment. His survival was attributed to a Christian widow from the local town who, under the influence of strange dream vision, regularly fed Gregory by dropping a loaf of freshly baked bread into the pit.