Troglodyte Monastery of Chichkhituri (David Gareja)
Chichkhituri Monastery (Georg. გარეჯის ჩიჩხიტურის მონასტერი) – one of the cave monasteries of the David Gareja complex, is located on the ridge between the Lavra of St. David and the monasteries of St. John the Baptist (Natlismtsemeli). The monastery is located on the northern slope of the mountain. At the top of the mountain there is a tower that can be seen from almost every monastery in the Gareja desert. The Chichkhituri tower was considered a place of stylites. On each floor of such a tower, with rare exceptions, there was only one hermit.
In addition to the tower, the Chichkhituri monastery includes three chapels located in the center of the caves. On the walls of the main temple, a heavily faded painting dating back to the first half of the 12th century has been preserved. Due to the collapse of the rock, the temple was completely open from the south. From the east and west the church is surrounded by cells. Today, it is impossible to get to the Chichkhituri monastery from the Georgian side, as this is a disputed territory between Georgia and Azerbaijan.
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