Jvari Monastery

Jvari means "cross" in Georgian, so this church is also known as the Church of the Holy Cross. Legend has it that in the 4th century, Saint Nino came to Mtskheta and erected a huge cross here to guide the Georgians to convert to Christianity. In 337, Georgia became the second country in the world to adopt Christianity as its state religion. In 545, Guaram I, the Duke of Kartli, built a small chapel on the north side of the cross, the "Small Church of the Cross." Between 586 and 605, his son Stepan Oz I built the current main church, the "Great Church of the Cross." The church was built on top of Jvari Mountain, and the reliefs on the outer walls have been severely weathered, showing the vicissitudes of time. The 11th-century wall surrounding the church is even more dilapidated, with most of it gone, leaving only some broken walls. Standing in front of the church, the entire ancient city of Mtskheta and the spectacular confluence of two rivers unfold before your eyes. The Mtkvari River, originating in Türkiye, and the Aragvi River, originating in the Caucasus Mountains, meet here, forming a huge Y-shape. On one side is the jade-like clear Aragvi River, and on the other side is the dark yellow Mtkvari River. The ancient city of Mtskheta lies at the confluence of the two rivers. Among the clusters of red-roofed houses, the majestic silhouette of the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral stands out. The architectural plan of the Jvari Church is cross-shaped, which was the first of its kind in Georgia at the time. It influenced the subsequent local and even Armenian church architectural styles and is known as the "cross church" style.