Georgia: The Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth of Georgia, Thea Tsulukiani, and her deputy, Nikoloz Aznaurashvili, visited the Sepieti Saint Archangel Church in Abasha Municipality on December 27, 2023.
The church dates back to the V-VI centuries and is a three-story basilica and a monument of cultural heritage.
The minister and her deputy inspected the roof of the church, which was repaired in 2021 with the financial support of the National Agency for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, which Aznaurashvili heads.
The roof rehabilitation project, developed by the agency’s specialists, replaced a damaged copper tire in some areas of the church roof, preventing water infiltration in the interior. The roofing works were performed by “Kiritschuro” Ltd.
The minister discussed the situation of the church and the possibilities of solving the remaining problems with his deputy, Archangel Andreia Melia, the head of the church named after the Saint George of Gezati, the Mayor of Abasha Gia Gabelaia and Amiran Nadareishvili, the supervisor of the village Sepieti, the chairman of the Church and the possibilities of resolving the remaining problems.
The Sepieti Saint Archangel Church is one of western Georgia’s oldest and most distinctive churches. It was built in the V-VI centuries and remodelled several times in the XIV-XVII centuries. It was painted in the XVII century and features murals on the walls and ceilings.
The three-room basilica named after the Holy Archangel of Sepieti village of Abasha municipality, built in the V-VI centuries, was remodelled several times in the XIV-XVII centuries and painted in the XVII century.
The cathedral is one of the earliest three-story basilicas in western Georgia, with a cylindrical shape moulded aphid, which is rubbish in a mixed arrangement.
The church has a cylindrical shape moulded apse, which is rare in a mixed arrangement. It was granted the status of a monument of cultural heritage in 2006.
