Bagrati Cathedral
Cathedral of 1003 on Ukimerioni hill above Kutaisi, rebuilt with new dome and roof in 2010-12.
Bagrati Cathedral, dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin, was raised on Ukimerioni hill above Kutaisi by King Bagrat III, who brought the Georgian lands under one crown. An inscription on the north wall records the laying of the floor in 1003. The building is a cross-in-square church on a large scale, and it stands beside the remains of Kutaisi fortress, giving wide views over the Rioni valley and the city below.
Ottoman forces blew up the dome and ceiling in 1692, and the church stood roofless for nearly three centuries. It was listed by UNESCO with Gelati Monastery in 1994. A reconstruction carried out between 2010 and 2012 replaced the dome, roof and much of the interior using modern materials, and after long disagreement over that work UNESCO removed the cathedral from the World Heritage list in 2017, leaving Gelati inscribed on its own.
Highlights
- Cross-in-square plan of the early eleventh century
- Floor inscription recording the date 1003
- Hilltop setting beside the ruins of Kutaisi fortress
- Carved ornament and fragments of the original mosaic floor
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