Kvatakhevi, Orthodox monastery in Shida Kartli, Georgia
Kvatakhevi is a monastery complex near the village of Kavtiskhevi in Shida Kartli, at the end of a gorge on the northern slopes of the Trialeti Range. Its main church, dating from the 12th–13th centuries, has a nearly square plan with a dome on two free-standing pillars and two pillars fused with the altar ledges. The façades are clad in finely cut white stone squares, and the complex also includes a refectory, a tower and monks' cells.
Founded in the 12th–13th centuries as a convent, Kvatakhevi was badly damaged during Timur's invasions in the 14th century. In 1854 Prince Ioane Tarkhan-Mouravi, a grandson of Giorgi XII, had it substantially repaired, and the bell tower was added in 1872. From 1854 to 1874 the archimandrite Tarasi Aleksi-Meskhishvili served here.
Kvatakhevi was a Georgian literary center where scribes such as Filip Baratashevili (16th c.), Ioane Avalishvili (16th–17th c.) and Tarasi Aleksishvili-Meskhishvili (19th c.) copied manuscripts; several of its manuscripts survive. Its medieval Georgian jewelry was later acquired by the State Historical Museum in Moscow. The monastery began as a convent.
The monastery lies at the end of a gorge near the village of Kavtiskhevi, about 55 km west of Tbilisi, on the northern slopes of the Trialeti Range; the last stretch is a local road. Steep slopes enclose the complex on three sides, so allow time for the final approach. The site is an active monastery, so dress modestly and keep voices low during services.
The monastery once held a treasury of medieval Georgian jewellery; much of it was later acquired by the State Historical Museum in Moscow, where it is displayed today. Several manuscripts copied at Kvatakhevi also survive, a trace of its role as a literary centre.
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