Monumentos Históricos de Mtskheta, Religious monuments in Mtskheta, Georgia

The Historical Monuments of Mtskheta comprise three Christian buildings in and around Mtskheta, Georgia, inscribed by UNESCO in 1994. Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, rebuilt between 1010 and 1029, occupies 2.33 ha in the town centre. Samtavro Church and Monastery, with a 4th-century origin and an 11th-century church, covers 0.49 ha in the north. Jvari, a tetraconch church of the late 6th century, stands on a hill across the Aragvi and Mtkvari rivers.

Mtskheta became the capital of the Iberian Kingdom in the 4th century BCE. In 334 CE, through the efforts of Saint Nino, Christianity was adopted as the state religion and the first wooden church was built. The capital moved to Tbilisi in the 6th century, but the patriarchate remained. Svetitskhoveli was rebuilt in stone between 1010 and 1029, Samtavro's first church dates from the 4th century with a larger one added in the 11th, and Jvari's small church was erected in 545, replaced by a larger one between 586 and 605.

Jvari takes its name from the Georgian word for cross: Saint Nino is said to have raised a cross on this hill over a pagan temple, and that cross is kept inside the church. Svetitskhoveli's name means "life-giving pillar", after the wooden pillar that, by tradition, rose upright at Nino's prayer. Samtavro holds the tombs of King Mirian III and Queen Nana, who made Christianity the state religion in 334.

The three monuments lie close together: Svetitskhoveli in the town centre, Samtavro in the northern part of Mtskheta, and Jvari on a hill across the Aragvi. Jvari is reached on foot up the slope, so firm shoes help; the other two stand on level ground. The Great Church of Jvari is still used for major celebrations, so expect worshippers at those times.

Jvari Monastery was the setting chosen by the Russian poet Mikhail Lermontov for his 1840 narrative poem Mtsyri, which is still read in Georgian schools today. Climbing the hill to reach it also gives a clear view of the point where the Aragvi and Mtkvari rivers meet, a view Lermontov described in that same poem.