Kurmukhi Church of St. George (Region of Hereti)
Kurmukhi Church of St. George (Georgian: ქურმუხის წმინდა გიორგის სახელობის ეკლესია) – The church is built on a rocky ridge of a mountain, on the site of an old church named after St. George, hence its name. Christianity came to the territory of the historical Georgian region of Kakhi (Georgian: კახი) (modern Gakh, Azerbaijan), previously part of the historical region of Georgia – Hereti (Hereti) (Georgian: ჰერეთი), during the time of St. Nino, the enlightener of Georgia. The Kurmukhi Church is mentioned in historical chronicles of the 8th century. According to historical sources, the temple was first named in honor of the Mother of God, and later in honor of St. George. The remains of the mentioned old temple were well preserved until the mid-20th century. According to scientists and a comparative analysis of monuments, the current version of the Kurmukhi Church can be dated to the end of the 13th and the first half of the 14th century.
In old Georgian chronicles, the temple is known as a monastery. On the forested terraces around the Kurmukhi temple, there are remains of ruins of buildings characteristic of monastic life. From historical sources it is known that the Kurmukhi church was destroyed many times, but was also restored many times by the Georgian population. The Kurmukhi Church of St. George has a special significance for the local Georgian population. Unfortunately, today the temple is inactive. Except for the festive day of St. George, local Georgians are not allowed to hold Christian services in the church. The Azerbaijani authorities deny that the Kurmukhi church belongs to the Georgian Orthodox tradition and consider it a monument of Albanian-Caucasian architecture. According to the division of the Orthodox Church of Georgia, the Kurmukhi church is under the jurisdiction of the Nekresi and Ereti diocese.
City of Kakhi (Georgian: ქალაქი კახი), Municipality of Kakhi (Georgian: კახის მუნიციპალიტეტი)
