Martvili Monastery

Martvili Monastery, also called Chkondidi, crowns the highest hill above the town of Martvili. Its name comes from the Megrelian word for oak: before Christianity, a giant oak on this hill was worshipped as a symbol of fertility and prosperity. After the people converted, the tree was cut down and a church was built over its roots. The main cathedral, rebuilt in the 10th century, is a tall domed church with frescoes painted between the 14th and 17th centuries. For centuries it was the seat of the bishops of Chkondidi, among the most powerful churchmen in medieval Georgia.

Today it is an active monastery, and visits are quiet and fairly short. Walk around the outside of the cathedral to see the dome and old stone walls, then step inside to look at the frescoes and icons. On a clear day the hilltop gives views over the green lowlands of Samegrelo, with the Caucasus on the northern horizon. The monastery is a short drive from Martvili Canyon, so most visitors combine the two in one morning.

Tradition dates the first church on the hill to the 7th century. After invasions destroyed it, the cathedral was rebuilt in the 10th century under King Giorgi II, ruler of the western Georgian kingdom of the Abkhazians. It became the seat of the Chkondidi bishops, and from the reign of David the Builder in the early 12th century the bishop of Chkondidi also served as the king's chief adviser. The surviving frescoes date from the 14th to the 17th centuries.