Jvari in miniature
Old Shuamta's 7th-century domed church.
GuramGraphy — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Kakhi Kuloshvili — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vladimir Pankratov — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lasha ge — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Unknown authorUnknown author — Public domain
Two monasteries share a forested valley west of Telavi. Old Shuamta (Dzveli Shuamta) keeps three early churches: a 5th-century basilica and two 7th-century domed churches, the larger modelled on Jvari near Mtskheta. Nearby, New Shuamta (Akhali Shuamta) is a working convent founded in the 16th century, its brick church dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin. Shuamta means between the mountains. With the old monastery abandoned in the 16th century, Queen Tinatin, first wife of King Levan of Kakheti, built the new one with her dowry; the chronicler Vakhushti says she had seen the spot, with its white dogwood, in a dream. She took the veil here and was buried in its church in 1591. Erekle II restored the church after 1762, and the poet Alexander Chavchavadze (died 1846) lies here. Closed by the Soviets in 1926, it went back to the Church in 1990; nuns returned in 1995. The old churches stand unadorned among tall trees, built of river stone with tufa corners. At the convent, an eight-windowed dome crowns the brick church, whose decorated facades show Persian influence; inside, a fresco is held to portray Tinatin, Levan and their son. A tall bell tower rises in the courtyard. Signs lead off the Gombori road to the convent, 10 km from Telavi by road, some 15 minutes by car or taxi; the old site lies 2 km further on. Ring the bell if the convent gate is closed; visitors usually see only the church. Allow one to two hours, and pair the trip with Batonis Tsikhe in central Telavi.
Old Shuamta's 7th-century domed church.
Frescoes scholars link to Tinatin and Levan.
The founder rests in her own church.
Forest road off the Gombori road, about 7 km west of Telavi
Yes: an asphalt road leaves the Gombori road and runs through the forest past the convent to the old site; in winter, watch for snow and ice. Walking between the two sites takes about half an hour.
Tinatin brought the icon of the Virgin of Khakhuli to Kakheti, and she and Levan had it covered in chased gold and precious stones. In 1926 the Soviets moved it to the Art Museum of Georgia in Tbilisi; a copy painted between 2002 and 2005 now stands in the church.