Gudarekhi Monastery (Region of Kvemo Kartli)
Gudarekhi Monastery Complex (Georgian: გუდარეხის მონასტერი) – The monastery is part of the remains of a medieval urban settlement and one of the oldest monuments of architecture. The monastery complex is built on a long and narrow rock, the top and end of which widens. Gudarekhi is an outstanding monument of Georgian architecture, characterized by high construction techniques. Most of the buildings are built of hewn stone and are characterized by high technologies of stone processing, the streets of the monastery complex were paved. The walled monastery complex covers an area of about 4.5 hectares and consists of the main church, bell tower, palace, monks’ residences, refectory, wine cellar, stables and various agricultural and religious semi-derelict stone structures.
Gudarekhi was once a royal monastery. Georgian kings called it “our sanctuary”. The main building of the Udareh monastery complex is the hall church of St. George, a large single-nave church built of well-cut blocks. Fasades are richly decorated with carvings. The eastern facade is divided by two triangular niches. The bell tower of the Gudarekhi monastery complex, the earliest bell tower in Georgia, is one of the most famous of its kind. One of the majestic buildings of the Gudarekhi monastery complex is the palace built on an artificial platform. In terms of construction technology, the palace and the temple are similar to each other, as their chronological contemporaneity reminds us. Fragments of the ornamented iconostasis of the Gudarekhi church are kept in the Art Museum of Georgia.
Gudarekhi village (Georgian: სოფელი გუდარეხი), Tetritskaro Municipality (Georgian: თეთრიწყაროს მუნიციპალიტეტი)
