Uplistsikhe

Interesting facts

At its height the town had more than 700 rock-cut rooms and structures, of which about 150 survive.

Pits up to four metres wide and as much as 12 metres deep were cut for animal sacrifices to underworld deities; some were once thought to be prisons.

Wine was pressed inside the town for religious rites: a rock-cut press with channels for juice and a wine cellar still survive.

The so-called Hall of Queen Tamar, a two-columned hall carved in the Hellenistic period, was later converted into a royal residence.

The eight-spoked wheel, a solar symbol, appears repeatedly at Uplistsikhe, used as decoration and even to cover sacrificial pits.

According to medieval Georgian tradition, the town was founded by Uplos, son of Mtskhetos and grandson of Kartlos, the legendary ancestor of the Georgians.

Its rock architecture blends rock-cut traditions from Anatolia and Iran, and pagan shrines stand alongside Christian churches.

The northern approach road was cut into the rock between walls up to 10 metres high, while moats guarded the north and east.

Systematic excavation began in 1957, and in 1977–78 archaeologists found a hidden treasure hoard in a ravine on the south side.

A 6th-century basilica here was hewn almost entirely from the rock, with only its southern wall built of masonry.

Why it is worth it

Uplistsikhe, "the lord's fortress", is a town carved out of a sandstone ridge on the left bank of the Mtkvari river in eastern Georgia, about 10 km east of Gori. People lived on the site from late in the 2nd millennium BC, and the oldest rock-cut rooms that survive date from the start of the 1st millennium AD, when it was a political and religious centre of the kingdom of Kartli (Iberia). It remained a town after Christianity arrived in the 4th century and regained importance as a stronghold while Arab emirs held Tbilisi, from the 8th to the 10th centuries. Mongol raids in the 14th century finished it off.

The complex covers about 8 hectares and is split into lower, middle and upper parts. A main "street" cut into the rock climbs the slope, with steps and narrow alleys branching off to houses, halls, cellars and ritual spaces. Some rooms are plain caves; others have ceilings carved to imitate wooden beams and coffering, niches in the walls, and in one case a facade with an arch and pediment in the Roman manner. Look for the pillared hall with its stone bench, which may have been a ruler's seat, and for the large ceremonial hall in the southern part. A tunnel that once carried water up from the river doubled as a secret passage and could be closed with an iron gate.

At the top stands a brick and stone basilica of the 9th–10th centuries, the one fully built structure among the carved rooms, with a wide view over the valley. An earthquake in 1920 destroyed parts of the site, and conservation has been under way since 2000; the complex has been on Georgia's UNESCO tentative list since 2007. Much of the jewellery and pottery found here is in the Georgian National Museum in Tbilisi. The rock is uneven and slippery in places, so wear good shoes, and bring water in summer, when there is little shade.

Getting there

Uplistsikhe is about 10 km from Gori; marshrutkas from Gori towards the village of Kvakhvreli drop passengers about 2 km from the entrance, or taxis from the centre of Gori will wait for you and bring you back. Tbilisi International Airport (TBS) is about 70 km away in a straight line, and many visitors come on a day trip from Tbilisi combined with Gori.

Uplistsikhe

Interesting facts

Why it is worth it

Getting there

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