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Atskuri Church and Castle

The small village of Atskuri, located some some 25 km southwest of the city of Borjomi and about 22km northeast of the city of Akhaltsikhe, houses two significant monuments of medieval Georgia within a couple of a hundred meters: Atskuri Church of the Dormition and Atskuri Fortress.

Hear more about Atskuri Church here or about Atskuri Fortress by clicking on the icon in the picture above.

Atskuri Church was originally built during the 10th and 11th century and was, in its time, one of the largest cathedrals in Georgia. Before full restorations were started in 2016, only a few walls of the once stately building remained.

But even the original cathedral did not last for very long. In 1283 the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti was shook by a heavy earthquake and the church at Atskuri had to be rebuilt, again with a cross-shaped floor plan and three protruding apses. The two phases of construction from the centuries before and after the earthquake can still be seen in the remaining walls in the different layers of stone.  

According to the renovation plan for Atskuri Church by the Georgian government from 2015, the cathedral also had the typical tholobate. A tholobate is the upright, cylinder-shaped part of a church building with windows all around, upon which the domed roof is raised. 

Until the middle of the 16th century, Atskuri was one of the most important Christian centres in medieval Georgia. It was the seat of a bishop and home to a famous icon, a Virgin Hodegetria.

A Virgin Hodegetria is a pictorial representation of the Virgin Mary holding the Child Jesus. The mother points towards her child as the source of salvation for humankind, while little Jesus raises his hand in a blessing gesture.

Medieval Georgian annals and legends have it that the icon was brought to Atskuri Church by Andrew the Apostle. In Georgia Andrew is also referred to as “the First-Called”.

Georgian religious tradition regards Saint Andrew not only as the first preacher of Christianity in Georgia, but as the founder of the Georgian Orthodox Church itself. According to Orthodox tradition Saint Andrew’s ecclesiastical successor is the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

When the heavy earthquake hit Atskuri in 1283, the icon, the Virgin Hodegetria, miraculously survived under the collapsed dome of the church and eventually found its home in Gelati Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Western Georgia near the city of Kutaissi.

When the Ottomans conquered the Samtskhe-Javakheti region in the second half of the 16th century, Atskuri Church, like many other Christian buildings, was deserted and left to decay.  

The Christian heritage of Atskuri lay fallow until the end of the Soviet Union. It was only at the beginning of the 1990s that a series of archaeological studies were conducted and several other buildings, such as a 10th century church and accessory structures with medieval Georgian inscriptions, were found in and around the cathedral.

In 2016 the government of Georgia launched a full restoration of Atskuri Church, which is currently still under way. Atskuri Church is inscribed on the list of the Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia.


How to get there:

Astkuri is located more or less halfway between the cities of Borjomi and Akhaltsikhe on main road ს8. You can reach Atskuri by taxi or minibus or in this case even by public transport, as there is a commuters’ train between Borjomi and Akhaltsikhe.
Taxi: 25-30 minutes, 2 GEL
Minibus: 25-30 minutes, 2 GEL
Train: 30-35 minutes, 1,5 GEL

Distances from major cities:
Akhaltsikhe - Atskuri: 22km | Borjomi - Atskuri: 25km

Opening hours:
Atskuri Church and Castle can be visited at any time during the week or on weekends.

Admission fee:
There is no admission fee.

Important things to know:
There is a small shop for water and local goods nearby, as well as some small restaurants and guest houses and an ATM.

Picture credits: beyondarts GmbH

Project “Increased regional added value in the tourism sectors of Georgia by Digital Heritage Tourism Guides” was funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) with funds of Austrian Development Cooperation.

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