Mtskheta, Uplistsikhe & Gori

  1. Jvari is the first domed church in Georgia and dates back to the early 7th century. Still good.
  2. Heart of Georgia.
  3. Soul of Georgia.
  4. Strength of Georgia.
  5. Mtskheta, the ancient capital of Iberia, was founded in the 5th century BC (the first settlements appeared here as early as the Bronze Age).
  6. The 11th-century Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in Mtskheta is the second largest after the golden-domed Trinity Cathedral. But it’s not about size.
  7. Cathedral courtyard.
  8. Divine light.
  9. Flame of faith.
  10. The grapevine cross was brought to Mtskheta by St. Nino, and then wandered here and there for a long time (now resides in the Sioni Cathedral).
  11. Beautiful branches won’t trim themselves!
  12. An archaeological museum in a reconstructed cinema building with a monumental ceramic panel from the Brezhnev era.
  13. Lanterns, too.
  14. The Transfiguration Church in Samtavro Monastery in northwest Mtskheta. Founded in the 4th century, revised and updated in the 11th.
  15. The Small Church of St. Nino in the monastery courtyard.
  16. I wish it were like this everywhere.
  17. The rock-hewn town Uplistsikhe was founded 3,000 years ago and developed until the 13th-century Mongol invasion with fire and sword.
  18. The stone walls reliably protected from the wind, and the mild climate made it easy to warm the premises even in winter.
  19. Architectural excesses in the so-called Queen Tamar Hall (which she may not have even visited).
  20. Long before the Mongols, the first Christians readily killed and burned local pagans. The Uplistsuli Church was built much later, in the 11th century.
  21. Meanwhile, Japanese quince fruits are used to make delicious jam, and they can also be added to tea for a fragrant sourness.
  22. The natural and structural transformation of sandstone in Uplistsikhe leaves room for the pareidolia. Here’s a caiman, for example.
  23. An elephant.
  24. A ducky.
  25. A dolichocephalic man with an annular cranial deformation, characteristic of many ancient cultures. All coincidences are random.
  26. Caucasian agama, too.
  27. Neighboring Gori: “Requiem” by Giorgi Ochiauri (a memorial to war heroes — corpses and amputees), the cathedral, and the ghoul’s museum.
  28. Warriors sit at the foot of a medieval citadel, over which Georgians and Persians fought fiercely for centuries. Free entry.
  29. From the walls, another view of Gori opens up, with the bionic Public Service Hall in the center. Like in Tbilisi, it embodies lightness and openness.
  30. And on the modest street of Amilakhvari, opposite the city hall, lies an incredible ceramic panel “1001 ornaments” by artist Irina Shotadze.