Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery, Georgia

Gelati Monastery, Kutaisi, Georgia


Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery are historical sites in Georgia. The Bagrati Cathedral was named after the first king to rule over a united Georgia, King Bagrat III. Its official name is the Cathedral of the Dormition, or Kutaisi Cathedral.

According to an inscription on the north wall of the cathedral, the floor was laid in chronicon 223, equivalent to AD 1003. The cathedral was destroyed by Ottoman troops in 1692, causing the cupola and ceiling to collapse, but otherwise leaving the structure still standing. Conservation work on the cathedral began in 1952 and is still on going.

The Gelati Monastery is a religious complex in Kutaisi, in western Georgia. Within the monastery are the Church of the Virgin, founded by the King of Georgia, David the Builder, in 1106, and the 13th century churches of St. George and St. Nicholas. David the Builder is also buried within the grounds of the monastery. The monastery has a fine collection of murals and manuscripts dating from the 12th to the 17th centuries.

For a long time, the monastery served as the cultural and intellectual center for Georgia. It was here that some of the brightest minds in Georgia did their researches, among them famous scholars such as Ioane Petritsi and Arsen Ikaltoeli. Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery was inscribed as a World Heritage Site during the 18th session of the World Heritage Committee which met in Phuket, Thailand, on 12-17 December, 1994.

Bagrati Cathedral, Kutaisi, Georgia

World Heritage Site Inscription Details

Location: N 42 15 43.992 E 42 42 59.004 in the city of Kutaisi, in the region of Imereti, Georgia
Inscription Year: 1994
Type of Site: Cultural
Inscription Criteria: IV

Visiting Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery

Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery are located in the city of Kutaisi. To reach it, you can take a bus from Tbilisi. The bus station is located at the end of the north metro line of Tbilisi. Alternatively you can arrange with a tour operator in Tbilisi for a package to Kutaisi.

List of World Heritage Sites in Georgia

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