4 / 5 - One review
How to get there
2h15 by road from Tbilisi, 20 min from Telavi
When to go
All year round
Minimum stay
One day
Shuamta (Georgia)
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Nicolas Landru
Practical information on Shuamta
Reviews of Shuamta
The monasteries of Shuamta are among the most famous of Kakheti. Old Shuamta is a fifth century chapel that stands alone on a hill of the Gombori Mountains; the new one is a nunnery with a sixteenth century church.
My suggestion:
Climb the hill on foot from the Telavi-Gombori road. Stop at New Shuamta before going on to enjoy the solitude of Old Shuamta.
My review
Shuamta means "between the mountains" and certainly deserves its name. In the fifth century, the founders of what is today one of the most ancient churches in Georgia found the location ideal, well-protected in the hills above the plain and facing the high mountains of Dagestan.
From below, you first arrive at Akhali Shuamta, the new monastery, founded at a later date and lower down, and which is today a convent that is still in operation. It is closed but if you ring, the nuns will certainly accept to let you visit the church. Otherwise, you can just enjoy its beautiful sleek silhouette that juts up from behind the walls.
After this place that is full of life, going to Dzvéli Shuamta, the Old Shuamta, is a more intimate experience. Infrequently visited and situated at the edge of the forest on a hill which is dominated by the mountains, the small stone basilica is steeped in spirituality and history. It is the last vestige of an age when Shuamta was one of the major monasteries of Kakheti. Its Romanesque-style architecture is simple, clear and attractive. It is said that the Georgian architect who designed it had never seen the plan of a basilica, hence its atypical appearance...
©
Nicolas Landru
