Mount Ararat with the historic Khor Virap monastery visible at center-left

Religious Heritage

After the Council of Ashtishat in 354 AD codified Armenian church discipline, hermits living in caves of the Geghama and Aragats ranges began organizing into communal monasteries — a transition Geghard Monastery still witnesses architecturally, with cells and a chapel cut into the cliff above its later free-standing churches.

Source

After the Council of Ashtishat in 354 AD codified Armenian church discipline, hermits living in caves of the Geghama and Aragats ranges began organizing into communal monasteries  a transition Geghard Monastery still witnesses architecturally, with cells and a chapel cut into the cliff above its later free-standing churches. 

1822Religious Heritage