Nedzvi Managed Reserve ( ka, ნეძვის აღკვეთილი) is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

in central

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 ...

, in Samtskhe-Javakheti situated in the

Lesser Caucasus The Lesser Caucasus or Lesser Caucasus Mountains, also called Caucasus Minor, is the second of the two main ranges of the Caucasus Mountains, of length about . The western portion of the Lesser Caucasus overlaps and converges with east Turkey an ...

, southwest to the nation's capital of

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 ( ...

Borjomi Municipality Borjomi ( ka, ბორჯომის მუნიციპალიტეტი, ''Borjomis munitsip'alit'et'i'') is a municipality in southern Georgia (country), Georgia, in the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti with a population of 24,998 (2021). It ...

. Nedzvi Managed Reserve along with Borjomi Strict Nature Reserve,

Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park The Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park (BKNP) ( ka, ბორჯომ-ხარაგაულის ეროვნული პარკი, ''borjom-kharagaulis erovnuli parki'') is a protected area in central Georgia, in Samtskhe-Javakheti, pa ...

and Goderdzi Petrified Forest Natural Monument is one of four protected areas under same management authority. The accurate size and borders of the protected areas has yet to be determined. Its

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

is that of the

Caucasus mixed forests The Caucasus mixed forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion in the Caucasus Mountains, as well as the adjacent Lesser Caucasus range and the eastern end of the Pontic Mountains. Geography The ecoregion covers an area of ...

Cultural heritage

There are several early Christian churches in Nedzvi area dated back to 9th century. The

Georgian Orthodox Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonl ...

, originally part of the

Church of Antioch The Church of Antioch (, ; ) was the first of the five major churches of what later became the pentarchy in Christianity, with its primary seat in the ancient Greek city of Antioch (present-day Antakya, Turkey). The earliest record of the ch ...

, gained its

autocephaly Autocephaly (; ) is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches. The status has been compared with t ...

and developed its doctrinal specificity progressively between the 5th and 10th centuries. Church Nedzvi located in gorge of the river Nedzvishevi is a monument of this period. It is dated to the mid-9th century. It was built by disciples of

Gregory of Khandzta Gregory of Khandzta ( ka, გრიგოლ ხანძთელი, ''Grigol Khandzteli''; 759 – 5 October 861) was a Georgian ecclesiastic figure and a founder and leader of numerous monastic communities in Tao-Klarjeti, a historical regi ...

and Christopher, the builder of the Dviri Monastery of Saint Cyricus. After the two restorations of the monument in 20th century in 1948 and in 1962, the original layout of the church was revealed. It was established that Nedzvi is the largest among existing famous three-church basilicas in Georgia.Tedo Dundua, Nino Silagadz
The Three-Church Basilica Type in Georgia.
Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University

References

Managed reserves of Georgia (country) Protected areas established in 1995 Geography of Samtskhe–Javakheti Tourist attractions in Samtskhe–Javakheti {{Georgia-geo-stub

Cultural heritage

See also

References