Bagrati Cathedral

A cathedral on Ukimerioni hill above the Rioni river, founded by King Bagrat III and consecrated in 1003 — the date is recorded by an inscription on the north wall. The church was built as a symbol of the unification of Georgia into a single kingdom and was the largest structure of its time in the country. In 1692 Ottoman troops blew the building up: the dome and the vaults collapsed, and for almost three centuries the cathedral stood as a ruin, which did not stop it remaining the chief symbol of Kutaisi. The reconstruction of 2009–2012 restored the roofing and the dome, but caused a dispute: UNESCO judged the work to distort the site's authenticity, and in 2017 the church was removed from the World Heritage list, which kept only Gelati Monastery. Fragments of eleventh-century mosaic floor and carving survive inside. From the terrace beside the cathedral you can see the whole Rioni valley and the city below.

On the map