UNESCO Heritage of Georgia

Svetitskhoveli Cathedral (Georgian:

სვეტიცხოვლის საკათედრო ტაძარი,

svet'icxovlis sak'atedro t'adzari; literally, "the

Living Pillar Cathedral") is a Georgian Orthodox

cathedral located in the historical town of

Mtskheta, Georgia, 20 km (12 mi) northwest of

the nation's capital of Tbilisi.

Svetitskhoveli, known as the burial site of

Christ's mantle, has long been the principal

Georgian church and remains one of the most

venerated places of worship to this day.[1] It

presently functions as the seat of the

archbishop of Mtskheta and Tbilisi, who is at

the same time Catholicos-Patriarch of All

Georgia.

The current cathedral was built in the eleventh

century by the architect Arsukisdze, though the

site itself is even older dating back to the early

fourth century and is surrounded by a number

of legends associated primarily with the early

Christian traditions.

It is the second largest church building in the

country, after the recently consecrated Holy

Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi, and is listed as an

UNESCO World Heritage Site along with other

historical monuments of Mtskheta.

The Glory of Iberia (1880s), an icon by Mikhail

Sabinin illustrating the legend of Living Pillar.

The original church was built in 4th century A.D.

during the reign of Mirian III of Kartli (Iberia). St.

Nino is said to have chosen the confluence of

the Mtkvari (Kura) and Aragvi rivers as the place

of the first Georgian Church.

According to Georgian hagiography, in the 1st

century AD a Georgian Jew from Mtskheta

named Elias was in Jerusalem when Jesus was

crucified. Elias bought Jesus’ robe from a

Roman soldier at Golgotha and brought it back

to Georgia. Returning to his native city, he was

met by his sister Sidonia who upon touching the

robe immediately died from the emotions

engendered by the sacred object. The robe

could not be removed from her grasp, so she

was buried with it.[2] The place where Sidonia is

buried with Christ's robe is preserved in the

Cathedral. Later, from her grave grew an

enormous cedar tree. Ordering the cedar

chopped down to build the church, St. Nino had

seven columns made from it for the church’s

foundation. The seventh column, however, had

magical properties and rose by itself into the

air. It returned to earth after St. Nino prayed

the whole night. It was further said that from

the magical seventh column a sacred liquid

flowed that cured people of all diseases. In

Georgian sveti means "pillar" and tskhoveli

means "life-giving" or "living", hence the name

of the cathedral. An icon portraying this event

can be seen on the second column on the right-

hand from the entrance. Reproduced widely

throughout Georgia, it shows Sidonia with an

angel lifting the column in heaven. Saint Nino is

in the foreground: King Mirian and his wife,

Queen Nana, are to the right and left.[2]

Georgia officially adopted Christianity as its

state religion in 337.

Jvari Monastery (Georgian: ჯვრის

მონასტერი) is a sixth century Georgian

Orthodox monastery near Mtskheta, eastern

Georgia. Along with other historic structures of

Mtskheta, it is listed as a World Heritage site by

UNESCO.

Jvari Monastery stands on the rocky

mountaintop at the

confluence of the

Mtkvari and Aragvi

rivers, overlooking

the town of

Mtskheta, which was

formerly the capital

of the Kingdom of

Iberia.

According to

traditional accounts,

on this location in the

early 4th century Saint Nino, a female

evangelist credited with converting King Mirian

III of Iberia to Christianity, erected a large

wooden cross on the site of a pagan temple.

The cross was reportedly able to work miracles

and therefore drew pilgrims from all over the

Caucasus. A small church was erected over the

remnants of the wooden cross in c.545 named

the "Small Church of Jvari".

The present building, or "Great Church of Jvari",

is generally held to have been built between

590 and 605 by Erismtavari Stepanoz I. This is

based on the Jvari inscriptions on its facade

which mentions the principal builders of the

church: Stephanos the patricius, Demetrius the

hypatos, and Adarnase the hypatos. Professor

Cyril Toumanoff disagrees with this view,

identifying these individuals as Stepanoz II,

Demetre (brother of Stepanoz I), and Adarnase

II (son of Stepanoz II), respectively.[1]

The importance of Jvari

complex increased over

time and attracted

many pilgrims. In the

late Middle Ages, the

complex was fortified

by a stone wall and

gate, remnants of which

still survive. During the

Soviet period, the

church was preserved

as a national

monument, but access was rendered difficult by

tight security at a nearby military base. After

the independence of Georgia, the building was

restored to active religious use. Jvari was listed

together with other monuments of Mtskheta in

1994 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

However, over the centuries the structures

suffered damage from rain and wind erosion

and inadequate maintenance. Jvari was listed in

the 2004 World Monuments Watch list by the

World Monuments Fund.

Bagrati Cathedral (Georgian: ბაგრატი;

ბაგრატის ტაძარი, or Bagratis tadzari), is an

11th-century cathedral in the city of Kutaisi, the

Imereti region of Georgia. One of the early

masterpieces of the medieval Georgian

architecture, the cathedral suffered heavy

damage throughout centuries and was

reconstructed to its present state through a

gradual process starting in the 1950s, with

major conservation works concluding in 2012. A

distinct landmark in the scenery of central

Kutaisi, the cathedral rests on the Ukimerioni

Hill.

Bagrati Cathedral was built in the early years of

the 11th century, during the reign of King

Bagrat III, due to which it was called "Bagrati",

i.e., Bagrat’s cathedral. An inscription on the

north wall reveals that the floor was laid in

"chronicon 223", i.e., 1003. In 1692, it was

devastated in an explosion by Ottoman troops

who had invaded the Kingdom of Imereti. The

incident caused the cupola and ceiling to

collapse.

Conservation and restoration works, as well as

archaeological studies at the Cathedral began in

the 1950s under the leadership of a Georgian

architect Vakhtang Tsintsadze. The restoration

works headed by Tsintsadze were divided into

six stages and continued for several decades

through 1994.[1] That same year in 1994

Bagrati Cathedral, together with the Gelati

Monastery, was included in UNESCO's World

Heritage Site list as a single entity. In 2001,

ownership of the cathedral was transferred

from the Georgian state to the Georgian

Orthodox Church. It is presently of limited use

for religious services, but attracts many pilgrims

and tourists. It is also frequently used as a

symbol of the city of Kutaisi, being one of its

main tourist attractions.

Pre-restoration eastern wall of the Bagrati

Cathedral seen in 2005 with its ceiling still

collapsed

In 2010, under the leadership of an Italian

architect Andrea Bruno, Georgia commenced

reconstruction works aimed at returning Bagrati

Cathedral to its original state as a religious

space.[2] In July 2010 UNESCO added Bagratli

cathedral to its list of endangered world

heritage sites in part because of the continuing

reconstruction, which it feared would affect the

structural integrity and authenticity of the

site.[3] Even before the reconstruction works, in

2008 ICOMOS was concerned about the

deteriorating state of Bagrati, but it

commended that any conservation efforts by

the Government should not include a type of

reconstruction which would affect the site's

historical value.[4] In 2011 UNESCO urged the

Georgian government authorities to develop a

rehabilitation strategy that would reverse some

of the changes made to the site in recent years,

but it acknowledged that these alterations may

be "almost irreversible".[5] In 2013, architect

Andrea Bruno was awarded a Georgian state

gold medal for his role in the Bagrati Cathedral

reconstruction and was subsequently

recognized for this project with the University

of Ferrara Domus International Prize for

Restoration and Conservation.[6] [7]

Gelati (Georgian: გელათის მონასტერი) is a

monastic complex near Kutaisi, Imereti, western

Georgia. It contains the Church of the Virgin

founded by the King of Georgia David the

Builder in 1106, and the 13th-century churches

of St George and St Nicholas.

The Gelati Monastery

for a long time was

one of the main

cultural and

intellectual centers in

Georgia. It had an

Academy which

employed some of the

most celebrated

Georgian scientists,

theologians and

philosophers, many of

whom had previously

been active at various

orthodox monasteries abroad, one of which

was the Mangana Monastery in Constantinople.

Among the scientists were such celebrated

scholars as Ioane Petritsi and Arsen Ikaltoeli.

Due to the extensive work carried out by the

Gelati Academy, people of the time called it "a

new Hellas" and "a second Athos".[citation

needed]

The Gelati Monastery has preserved a great

number of murals and manuscripts dating back

to the 12th to 17th

centuries. The

Khakhuli triptych was

enshrined at Gelati

until being stolen in

1859.

In Gelati is buried one

of the greatest

Georgian kings, David

the Builder. Near his

grave are the gates of

Ganja, which were

taken as trophies by

king Demetrius I in 1138.

In 1994, Gelati Monastery was recognized by

UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The site was

included in the 2008 World Monuments Watch

List of 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World

Monuments Fund to draw attention to

deterioration caused by prolonged neglect.[1]

Preserved by its long isolation, the Upper

Svaneti region of the Caucasus is an

exceptional example of mountain scenery with

medieval-type villages and tower-houses. The

village of Chazhashi still has more than 200 of

these very unusual houses, which were used

both as dwellings and as defence posts against

the invaders who plagued the region.

Preserved by its long-lasting geographical

isolation, the mountain landscape of the Upper

Svaneti region is an exceptional example of

mountain scenery with medieval villages and

tower houses.

The property occupies the upper reaches of the

lnguri River Basin between the Caucasus and

Svaneti ranges. It consists of several small

villages forming a community that are

dominated by the towers and situated on the

mountain slopes, with a natural environment of

gorges and alpine valleys and a backdrop of

snow-covered mountains. The most notable

feature of the settlements is the abundance of

towers.

The village of Chazhashi in Ushguli community,

situated at the confluence of the lnguri and

Black Rivers, has preserved more than 200

medieval tower houses, churches and castles.

The land use and settlement structure reveal

the continued dwelling and building traditions

of local Svan people living in harmony with the

surrounding natural environment. The origins of

Svaneti tower houses go back to prehistory. Its

features reflect the traditional economic mode

and social organization of Svan communities.

These towers usually have three to five floors,

and the thickness of the walls decreases, giving

the towers a slender, tapering profile. The

houses themselves are usually two-storeyed;

the ground floor is a single hall with an open

hearth and accommodation for both people and

domestic animals, the latter being separated by

a wooden partition, which is often lavishly

decorated. A corridor annex helped the thermal

insulation of the building. The upper floor was

used by the human occupants during summer,

and also served as a store for fodder and tools.

A door at this level provided access to the

tower, which was also connected with the

corridor that protected the entrance. The

houses were used both as dwellings and as

defence posts against the invaders who plagued

the region.

The property is also notable for the

monumental and minor arts. The mural

paintings are outstanding examples of

Renaissance painting in Georgia.

Used material:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svetitskhoveli_Cathedral

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jvari_(monastery)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagrati_Cathedral

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelati_Monastery

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/709

https://www.google.ge/search?q=სვეტიცხოველი&biw=1280&bih=690&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=

X&ved=0ahUKEwicuabW9qHKAhWEKA8KHQiDAh8Q_AUIBigB#imgrc=rFzacizfrKr3WM%3A

https://www.google.ge/search?biw=1280&bih=690&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=ჯვრის+მონასტერი&oq=ჯვრ

ის+მონასტერი&gs_l=img.3...280549.285863.0.286190.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c.1.64.img..0.0.0.iIrJa

Cnlg8U#imgrc=Mq6veY9N-G_r9M%3A

https://www.google.ge/search?biw=1280&bih=690&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=ბაგრატის+ტაძარი&oq=ბაგრ

ატის+ტაძარი&gs_l=img.3...268593.274685.0.274962.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c.1.64.img..0.0.0.I-

6Z_VjBDZo#imgrc=k3gckAZjBVON2M%3A

https://www.google.ge/search?biw=1280&bih=690&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=გელათი&oq=გელათი&gs_l=i

mg.3...159321.163239.0.163633.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c.1.64.img..0.0.0.dSB2jyo4zvk#imgrc=cpnZZB

3ecZrGuM%3A

By Mariam Bokhua