Jvari Monastery (Region of Mtskheta – Mtianeti)
Jvari Monastery (Georgian: ჯვრის მონასტერი) – Georgian monastery and temple on a mountaintop at the confluence of the Kura and Aragvi rivers, near the ancient capital of Georgia, Mtskheta (Georgian: მცხეთა). The name of the temple is associated with the first Christian cross (jvari), which was erected on this site by Saint Nino, Equal to the Apostles. In terms of the perfection of its architectural forms, Jvari is one of the masterpieces of Georgian church architecture. It revealed the creative search of several generations of Georgian architects. The first example of a cross-type temple represents a new level of sculptural design of architecture. The architectural solution of the interior space deserves special mention. Although the temple cannot be called large, the interior space of the temple amazes with the magnificence of its architectural forms. It is so perfect that it is impossible to feel its true size.
Erected on top of a rocky massif, the church serves as its organic completion and the center of the entire surrounding landscape. The temple merges with its surroundings not only in form and decoration, but also in scale, proportions and color. It is built according to the principles of Georgian national architecture and is completely different from Byzantine architecture. The name of the architect is unknown, the date of his construction of the temple is nowhere specified, but by the persons mentioned in the relief inscription, as well as by comparing other written documents it was established that Jvari was built in 585-604. The ruins of the wall around the temple belong to the XVII-XVIII centuries and it was assigned the function of protecting the monastery. From the territory of the temple there is a magnificent view of the surrounding area – below is the ancient capital Mtskheta with the cathedrals of Svetitskhoveli (Georgian: სვეტიცხოველი) and Samtavro (Georgian: სამთავრო), on the left – Bagineti ridge with remnants of Armazi (Georgian: არმაზი). The Monastery of Zedazeni (Georgian ზედაზენი) is on the high mountain on the right. The temple of Jvari is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List .
City of Mtskheta (Georgian: ქალაქი მცცხეთა), Mtskheta Municipality (Georgian: მცხეთის მუნიციპალიტეტი)