The Besleti Bridge ( ka, ბესლეთის ხიდი) also known as Queen Tamar's Bridge ( ka, თამარის ხიდი) is a medieval arched stone bridge at

Sukhumi Sukhumi or Sokhumi is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the Capital city, capital and largest city of Abkhazia, a partially recognised state that most countries consider a part of Georgia (country), Georgia. The ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

’s breakaway republic of

Abkhazia Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...

. Located some 6 km from the city centre, the bridge spans the small mountain River Besletka, and dates back to the late 12th century. Thirty-five meters in overall length (the arch itself is 13.3 m) and eight meters high, this single-arch bridge is one of the most illustrative examples of the medieval bridge design popular during the reign of

Tamar of Georgia Tamar the Great ( ka, თამარ მეფე, tr , ; 1160 – 18 January 1213) queen regnant, reigned as the List of monarchs of Georgia#Kings of unified Georgia (1008–1490), Queen of Kingdom of Georgia, Georgia from 1184 to 1213, ...

(r. 1184-1213) who is traditionally credited to have commissioned the construction of the Beslet bridge. A contemporary inscription in the early Georgian ''

asomtavruli The Georgian scripts are the three writing systems used to write the Georgian language: Asomtavruli, Nuskhuri and Mkhedruli. Although the systems differ in appearance, their letters share the same names and alphabetical order and are written ...

'' alphabet reads: "''Christ the Lord, glorify in every possible way in both lives.''" An engraved cross and the

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Τ have survived in the lower part of the left pillar of the bridge. A stone stele with Georgian inscriptions stood at the head of the bridge, but was lost during the

War in Abkhazia War in Abkhazia may refer to: *War in Abkhazia (1992–1993) The War in Abkhazia was fought between Georgian government and paramilitary forces, and a coalition of Abkhaz separatist forces and North Caucasian militants between 1992 and 1993 ...

early in the 1990s. In the vicinity of the bridge are ruins of medieval defense towers, a testimony to strategic importance of the locality. Bridge of Besleti has been given the status of national importance monument.

Sources

* Tsitsishvili, I., Ukleba, D. "Besleti", in: ''

Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia'' ( ka, ქართული საბჭოთა ენციკლოპედია, tr, ქსე) is the first universal encyclopedia in the Georgian language, printed in Tbilisi from 1965, the editor ...

'', vol. 2, pp. 341–2.

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

, 1977 * Lidiia Dubinskaia (1985), ''The Soviet Union: A Guide & Reference Book'', p. 283.

Raduga Publishers Raduga Publishers (, English: "rainbow") was a Soviet publishing house of innovative children's books, which has been described as "one of the most important book publishers of its type" during the early twentieth century.Andrea Immel"Cotsen Chil ...

* Cultural heritage in Abkhazia, Tbilisi, 2015 Bridges completed in the 12th century Bridges in Georgia (country) Transport in Abkhazia Buildings and structures in Abkhazia Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia Arch bridges Stone bridges {{Abkhazia-stub