Religious Tour in Samegrelo
The area occupied by the historical Principality of Samegrelo has had numerous names throughout history, including Colchis, Egrisi, Lazika, Odishi, and Mingrelia. It is located in a region that for much of its history has been of great strategic importance, and where powerful empires ran up against one another and often did battle. As a result, it has witnessed repeated incursions of armies of Romans, Byzantines, Mongols, Turks, Persians, Russians, and others. In ancient times Samegrelo was a major part of the kingdom of Colchis (9th- 6th centuries BC) and its successor Egrisi (4th century BC-6th century AD). In the 11th-15th centuries, Samegrelo was a part of the united Kingdom of Georgia. From the 16th century to 1857, the independent Principality of Samegrelo was under the rule of the House of Dadiani. In December 1803, the principality came under the patronage of the Russian Empire by an agreement between the Tsar and the Megrelian Prince Grigol Dadiani. The last adult Prince, David Dadiani, died in 1853, leaving his wife Ekaterine as regent for his young son, Niko. However in 1857, the principality was abolished and absorbed into the Tsarist Russian Empire. Prince Niko Dadiani officially renounced his rights to the throne in 1868.
First Day: Tbilisi - Anaklia
Departure from Tbilisi -18:00
Dinner and overnight at the Hotel Anaklia
Second Day: Zugdidi
Breakfast at the hotel - 09:00
Departure from the hotel – 10:00
Dadiani Palace
The museum complex includes: palaces of the Samegrelo queen Ekaterine Chavchavadze-Dadiani and Prince Niko Dadiani, court church, and the botanic garden. In the museum are kept: samples of the I c. B.C. - XIX A.D. goldsmith works; archaeological materials representing antique period Greekand Georgian culture; collection of Christian sacred objects, samples of European applied art; relics of Samegrelo princes, collection of paintings of Russian, French, English painters, etc.
The first exhibition, of archaeological excavations of the ancient city of Nakalakevi was prepared by Megrelian prince David Dadiani and took place in 1840. Three palaces form the modern museum complex, parts of which are also Blachernae Virgin Church and Zugdidi Botanical Garden. The Dadiani Palaces History and Architecture Museum houses some exhibits of natural cultural heritage of Georgia – Tagiloni treasure materials, Mother of God holy vesture, the icon of queen Bordokhan – mother of queen Tamar of Georgia, manuscripts from 13th – 14th centuries, miniatures, memorial relics of Dadiani dynasty, and objects connected to emperor of France Napoleon Bonaparte – brought to the palace by the husband of David Dadiani's daughter, prince Achille Murat, grandson of Napoleon's sister, Carolina. The palace was fully transformed into a museum on May 1, 1921, at the initiative of Georgian ethnographer and geologist Akaki Chanturia.
Departure from Zugdidi to Taishi – 13:00
Tsaishi Cathedral
The Tsaishi Cathedral of St. Mary is administered by the Zugdidi and Tsaishi Eparchy of the Georgian Orthodox Church. The domed church was built in the 13th -14th centuries. The church was destroyed by an earthquake and was rebuilt in the 17th century. For centuries Tsaishi Church was a centre of education. The oldest part of the church is located outside the wall and dates back to the 11th century, judging by its interior.
Lunch at the hotel Anaklia – 15:00
Gala Dinner (Megrelian Cuisine) – 19:00
Third Day: Zugdidi – Martvili – Tbilisi
Breakfast at the hotel - 09:00
Departure from the hotel – 10:00
Martvili Monastery
In the 7th century the monastery of Saint Martyrs was built in the village of Martvili. Its base was a huge oak tree that for centuries served as a pagan idol. People used to worship this oak as a god of fertility, fruitfulness and prosperity. In the 1st century, one of Christ's Apostles - Andrew the First - converted the natives to Christianity who then cut down the oak tree and built a church named after Andrew the First in its place.
Martvili-Chkondidi Cathedral was built late in the 7th century. Revered as a gem of Georgian masonry, this cathedral rests on the roots of the old oak tree. The church is cross-domed, and paintings on the walls date back to the 6th and 7th centuries. A two-storey cathedral was built next to the church in the 10th century. In the Middle Ages the Martvili Monastery was a centre of culture and education. It attracted many writers, translators and philosophers.
Nokalakevi
Nokalakevi (literally meaning "the place where a town was") is a village and archaeological site of Samegrelo. In Georgian chronicles, Nokalakevi is called "Tsikhegoji - the fortress of Kuji." According to Georgian chronicles, the fortress was built by Kuji - duke of Egrisi and Svaneti in the 3rd c. B.C. It is located in the district of Senaki. Presumably it was the location of the mythical city of Aia, capital of the Kingdom of Colchis.
The Golden Fleece was said to be kept in this very place. Archaeological excavations have unearthed several different layers of civilization on the territory of Nokalakevi. The oldest layers date back from the 8th-7th cc. B.C. Different valuable archaeological materials were unearthed on Nokalakevi's territory. Some of the recovered remnants are of wine vessels, golden, silver, bronze and glass adornments, and diverse pottery and ceramic objects. The ruins of ancient palaces, Christian churches, baths, and tunnels have also been identified and preserved.
Lunch at the restaurant - 14:00
Departure from Martvili to Tbilisi – 16:00
The Price of the Tour – 175 GEL for one person
(Minimum of the group – 20 persons)
The Price includes:Transportation service, Guide service, Hotel service, Meal.
The Price DOES NOT include:Alcohol, Travel insurance.
Spend 3 days and 2 nights at the HOTEL ANAKLIA |
