Page:The History of Armenia - Avdall - Volume 1.djvu/157

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112 HISTORY OF ARMENIA.

the bones of the apostle Thomas, who suffered in India^ were brought into Armenia, and placed in the village of Kholz in the province of Alznies. Eustathius, one of the seventy whom our Lord sent into various parts of the world to spread the faith, coming into Armenia, was put to death in Seunic, and his remains were in- terred in the place now called by his name^ Setathev, or Tathev. Elisha, a disciple of Thaddeus or of Jude, accompanied by three others, came into Upper Armenia, where, by his preaching, almost all the inhabitants be- came Christians. He suffered martyrdom on the plain of Arghun. About this time Nero succeeded to the imperial purple at Rome, and Sanatruk sent an embassy to him with rich presents, to confirm the ancient treaty between the Armenians and Romans. Nero received the ambassadors courteously, and invited them to his palace. On their going thither they were met by Agrippina the emperor s mother^ who, with Seneca, his ancient tutor, advised him to dismiss them without any further notice than that which he had previously taken of them. A. a 55. After Sanatruk had taken upon himself the government of Lower Armenia, the capital Nisi* bis sustained a violent shock of an earthquake^ by which it was severely injured. Sanatruk therefore entirely demolished and rebuilt it on a

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