
Samtavisi ( ka, სამთავისი) is an eleventh-century
Georgian Orthodox
The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
in eastern
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to t ...
, in the region of
Shida Kartli
Shida Kartli ( ka, შიდა ქართლი, , ; "Inner Kartli") is a landlocked administrative region (''Mkhare'') in eastern Georgia. It comprises a central part of the historical-geographic province of Shida Kartli. With an area of , Sh ...
, some 45 km from the nation's capital
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...
, near
Igoeti village. The cathedral is now one of the centers of the
Eparchy of Samtavisi and Gori
Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on the ...
of the Georgian Orthodox Church. The church is a typical example and the founder of the Georgian interpretation of the
cross-in-square
A cross-in-square or crossed-dome plan was the dominant architectural form of middle- and late-period Byzantine churches. It featured a square centre with an internal structure shaped like a cross, topped by a dome.
The first cross-in-square c ...
churches. It was built in the period of decorative and artistic bloom in the
architecture of Georgia ''For the unrelated style that emerged in the English-speaking world during the reigns of successive kings George, see Georgian architecture.''
The architecture of Georgia refers to the styles of architecture found in Georgia. The country is ex ...
.
History
The cathedral is located on the left bank of the Lekhura River, some 11 km of the town of
Kaspi. According to a Georgian tradition, the first monastery on this place was founded by the
Assyria
Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the As ...
n missionary Isidore in 572 and later rebuilt in the 10th century. Neither of these buildings has survived however. The earliest extant structures date to the eleventh century, the main edifice being built in 1030 as revealed by a now lost stone inscription. The cathedral was built by a local bishop and a skillful architect Hilarion, the son of Vane Kanchaeli, who also authored the nearby church of Ashuriani. The Cathedral was heavily damaged by a series of earthquakes, when the dome and partially the western wall and the pillars collapsed. According to the inscription on the western façade, above the window, which says "The secondary builder of the temple was the daughter of king of the kings and the wife of Amilakhor, Gayane", the Cathedral was first partially reconstructed in the 15th-16th century. The noble Georgian family
Amilakhvari
The Amilkhvari ( ka, ამილახვარი) was a noble house of Georgia which rose to prominence in the fifteenth century and held a large fiefdom in central Georgia until the Imperial Russian annexation of the country in 1801. They were ...
played significant role in the history of the church. In 1679,
Givi Amilakhvari
Givi Amilakhvari ( ka, გივი ამილახვარი) (1689–1754) was a Georgian nobleman (''tavadi'') with a prominent role in the politics of eastern Georgia in the first half of the 18th century. He waged a lengthy struggle agai ...
and his wife ordered new frescoes to be painted by Samtavisi bishop Meliton, as documented by inscription on the apse fresco. It was reconstructed again in the 19th century by the architect
Ripardi, when part of decorations were lost. For example, one of the two
gryphons on eastern façade. The masterly decorated eastern façade is the only surviving original structure. Other alterations included removal of portals, widening and deepening of connections between the façade quadras.
[Закарая, П. (1983) Памятники Восточной Грузии. Искусство, Москва, 376 с. akaraya, P. Monuments of Eastern GeorgiaIn Russian)]
Architecture
The Samtavisi Cathedral is a prolonged rectangular 4-piered
cruciform domed church. It illustrates a Georgian interpretation of the cross-in-square form which set an example for many churches built in the heyday of medieval Georgia. It currently has only southern portal, but presumably also had northern and western ones. The dome rests on the altar projections and two free pillars. In contrast to earlier Georgian churches, the drum of the dome is taller surmounted by a conical roof. The reconstructed dome
tholobate
In architecture, a tholobate (from el, θολοβάτης, tholobates, dome pedestal) or drum is the upright part of a building on which a dome is raised. It is generally in the shape of a cylinder or a polygonal prism.
In the earlier Byzanti ...
is unproportionally narrow. It has twelve window, seven of them are real, other five imitated. Their original ornamentation, found currently on western façade, was richer than subsequently reconstructed. The central altar
apse
In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...
, the
prothesis and the
sacristy are in eastern part. The central nave is connected to the lateral naves in the western part through the arcade.
The exterior is distinguished by the liberal use of ornamental blind arcading. The apses do not project, but their internal position is marked by deep recesses in the wall. Artistically, the most rounded portion of the church is its five-arched eastern façade, dominated by the two niches and enlivened by a bold ornate cross motif, which is a harmonic continuation of dynamic arcading. The central axis of the façade has a high cross, ornamented window and rather characteristic motif of two rombs, copied in later churches. The most elaborate decoration, a relief of
gryphon
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back ...
can be found up in the right arch. The arcading is also spread on lateral façades. The southern façade has remnants of portal. The western façade is plain with two windows. Their ornamentation was previously on the former dome and look rather unharmonious on the wall. Western and eastern façades have inscriptions, telling about the construction year and the architect, and the subsequent reconstruction.
Frescoes
The original frescoes of the 11th century, found under the apse
plaster
Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "r ...
, are rather fragmentary. The 17th century frescoes, less monumental and less detailed than the earlier, remain only in the dome and the apse. The dome fresco depicts the
Christ Pantocrator
In Christian iconography, Christ Pantocrator ( grc-gre, Χριστὸς Παντοκράτωρ) is a specific depiction of Christ. ''Pantocrator'' or ''Pantokrator'', literally ''ruler of all'', but usually translated as "Almighty" or "all-p ...
with six-winged
seraphs
A seraph is a celestial being in Jewish and Christian mythology.
Seraph or its plural seraphim may also refer to:
Saints
* Saint Serafina (born 1238), Italian saint
* Seraphim of Sarov (born 1759), Russian saint
Aviation
* Back Bone Seraph, a F ...
and evangelists. Prophets are found between the
tholobate
In architecture, a tholobate (from el, θολοβάτης, tholobates, dome pedestal) or drum is the upright part of a building on which a dome is raised. It is generally in the shape of a cylinder or a polygonal prism.
In the earlier Byzanti ...
s, and Mary with Jesus among them; below the windows the
archangels
Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the hierarchy of angels. The word ''archangel'' itself is usually associated with the Abrahamic religions, but beings that are very similar to archangels are found in a number of other relig ...
. Traditional
Deesis
In Byzantine art, and in later Eastern Orthodox art generally, the Deësis or Deisis (, ; el, δέησις, "prayer" or "supplication"), is a traditional iconic representation of Christ in Majesty or Christ Pantocrator: enthroned, carrying ...
is depicted in the altar
conch
Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends).
In North Am ...
. Multifigure
Eucharist
The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was institu ...
is found in the upper part of the apse, and below it, bishops with open scrolls and deacons. Dominant colors are dark brown, blue, yellow and dark grey.
Other structures
Beyond the main church, the Samtavisi complex includes a badly damaged two-storied bishop's residence, a small church (5.8х3.2m), and a three-storied bell-tower (5.7х7.3m) attached to the 3-5m high fence made of stone and brick. The bell-tower, built into northern wall, dates to the 16th-17th centuries. Its ground floor has a gate, the middle floor was for the guards and the upper the belfry. All other structures date to the 17th-18th centuries. Original wall, surrounding the cathedral, did not survive. The current wall includes a rounded tower with semicircular teeth.
References
*Alshibaia, G., ''Samtavisi''. Tbilisi: 1962.
*Dan Cruickshank (ed., 1996), ''Banister Fletcher's A History of Architecture'', page 314. Architectural Press, .
Samtavisi ''Georgia Department of Tourism and Resorts''. Accessed on August 11, 2007.
External links
Samtavisi photo gallery ''Monuments of Georgian Architecture''. Accessed on August 11, 2007.
Samtavisi description
{{Coord, 42, 00, 22, N, 44, 24, 33, E, type:landmark_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title
Georgian Orthodox cathedrals in Georgia (country)
11th-century Eastern Orthodox church buildings
Buildings and structures in Shida Kartli
World Heritage Tentative List
Tourist attractions in Shida Kartli