Khor Virap

The Khor Virap (, meaning deep pit) monastery is a 7th-century Armenian monastery in the Ararat plain in Armenia, very close to the border with Turkey and the closest point in Armenia to Mount Ararat, the national symbol of Armenia.
Khor Virap is significant in Armenian history because it is the where Saint Gregory the Illuminator (the patron-saint of Armenia) was imprisoned in a deep dungeon for 13 years by the then pagan Armenian King Trdat III. According to Armenian legend, the King contracted a vile disease turning him into a wild boar. After releasing Saint Gregory from the dungeon, the King was healed by Saint Gregory and converted him to Christianity in 301 AD, making Armenia the first country to adopt Christianity as its state religion. 
==History==
The main church, St. Astvatsatsin, dates from the end of the 17th century. The smaller St. Gevorg Chapel was originally constructed in 642 by Catholicos Nerses III the Builder, but has been repeatedly rebuilt. St. Gevorg was built over the pit of imprisonment of Saint Gregory the Illuminator. This prison pit is where Saint Gregory the Illuminator was imprisoned for 13 years before curing King Trdat III of a disease. As reverence for Saint Gregory's act of healing and kindness, the King converted Armenia into the first officially Christian nation in the world in the year 301.
In the mid-1990s, volunteers for the Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia helped renovate/restore the cathedral.
==Gallery==
Image:Khor Virap Monastery.jpg|General view of the monastic complex with the border of Turkey at right
Image:KhorVirap-view.jpg|View of the monastery seen when approaching from the highway
Image:Armenia_Khor_Virap_Monastery.JPG|Surb Astvatsatsin (Holy Mother of God) church (17th c.)
Image:KhorVirap-Astvatsatsin.jpg|Surb Astvatsatsin church
Image:Khor Virap. Astvatsatsin Church.jpg|Surb Astvatsatsin church
Image:KhorVirap-St_Gevork.jpg|Surb Gevorg (Saint George) chapel (built over the dungeon, 7th c.)
Image:Khor Virap 1153.jpg|The shaft leading down to the "deep dungeon" (the khor virap)
Image:Khor Virap inside the hole 1.jpg|Inside the "deep dungeon"
==External links==
*Khor Virap at Armenica.org
*Detailed information about Khor Virap on Armeniapedia.org
*Photos at Armenia Photos.info
Category:Christian monasteries in Armenia
Category:Visitor attractions in Armenia
Category:Christian monasteries established in the 7th century
Category:Oriental Orthodox congregations established in the 7th century
de:Kloster Chor Virap
eo:Ĥor-Virapo
fr:Khor-Virap
it:Khor Virap
nl:Khor Virab
pl:Chor Wirap
pt:Khor Virap
ru:Хор Вирап
sl:Khor Virap
tr:Hor Virap Kilisesi
uk:Хор Вірап