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Uraveli, Agara Monastery, Murals of the Church of St. John the Baptist

Building: Uraveli, Agara Monastery, Church of St. John the Baptist
Layer of the Murals: One Layer
Date/Period: 10th c.
Donor(s): Unknown
Painter(s): Unknown
Building Gallery

Inscription(s)

of the Donor(s)
of the Painter(s)

Description

The fragments of plastering have survived on actually all the walls of the interior of the main church; however, frescos adorned only the chancel apse. The painting got sooted and damaged over centuries.

 

Chancel

Nothing has remained from the painting of the chancel conch.

Below the conch a row of niches – a total of eight – runs along the whole perimeter of the chancel; among them, in the center of the apse, is a small-size one with a high seat. Painting in the niches has been preserved fragmentarily. A half-figure of a saint martyr was depicted in the conch of each niche, and below – two figures of angels and prophets. The images are accompanied by asomtavruli inscriptions outlined in black paint; on the northern section of the chancel, in the conch of the second niche from the window St. Cyprian is depicted (Ⴜ(ႫႨႣႠ)Ⴢ ႩჃ()ႮႰ()|Ⴀ()Ⴄ || ႫႶႣႤႪ|ႫႭႼႠႫႤ Bishop-Martyr Saint Cyprian) with a closed book in the left hand. In the third niche one can read: [ႩႪႤ]ႫႤႬႲႭႱ – Klementos; in the fourth nicheႫႠႲႧႤ Matthews. Among the saints there are images of three crowned holy mothers of which two, according to iconographical features, could be St. Catherine and St. Barbara.


Bibliography

Giorgi Boch’oridze, Mogzauroba samtskhe-javakhet’shi [Journey to Samtskhe-Javakhet’i] (Tbilisi, 1992).

Asmat’ Ok’ropiridze, “Uravlis agaris monastris mt’avari tadzris mokhatuloba” [“Murals in the Main Church of Uraveli Agara Monastery”], in Valeri Asatiani ed., Akhaltsikhisa da tao-klarjet’is epark’ia [Diocese of Akhaltsikhe and Tao-Klarjeti] (Tbilisi, 2013), 558–61.

Asmat’ Ok’ropiridze, “Agaris monasteri. mkhatvroba” [“Agara Monastery. Murals”], Sak’art’velos mart’lmadidebeli eklesia. entsiklopedia [Georgian Orthodox Church. An Encyclopedia] I: 43–5.