In Ravished Armenia Aurora Mardiganian, a survivor of the Armenian genocide of 1915-1923, recalls sixteen young Armenian girls being "crucified" by their Ottoman tormentors. The story starts in 1915 when Arshaluys was 14 years old. She personally witnessed the murder of her father, mother, brothers and sisters. She was taken to the harem of a number of Turkish pashas, but had remained attached to her Christian Armenian faith despite being tortured repeatedly at the hands of her captors.