Bochorma Fortress
Bochorma fortress is a monument of Georgian architecture, a large fortress northwest of the Gombori Pass, on the banks of the river Iori, on a high mountain, near the village of Bochorma.
It is mentioned in historical sources from the first quarter of the 10th century. At that time, it was the political center of the Principality of Kakheti and also represented an important strategic point.
The fortress consists of two parts. The main one is the citadel, which is located on the highest place and, apparently, served as a hall at one time.
On its territory, an old church and the remains of a palace-type building, as well as relatively new buildings, have been preserved. The 10th-century St. George Church of the Bochorma Fortress is a building with six apses crowned with a dome, the walls of which are lined with limestone on the inside and greenish sandstone on the outside.
The elevated altar is separated from the overall volume of the church by a 18th-century stone iconostasis.
Fragments of painting on a blue background (12th century) have been preserved in the apses of the church. From the outside, the church has twelve naves. The church of the Bochorma Fortress is the most artistically complete building. Its plan and proportions, as well as the all decorations, are created as a single formed system.
On the southern slope of the citadel was a palace, which also belongs to the old chronological layer. Two halls on the lower floor are connected and have survived to this day. The palace was built of cobblestones and local crushed stone.
At the highest point of the fortress (at a height of 15 m) stands the so-called “King’s Hall”, which is connected to the citadel and is a tower-type building. There are niches and windows in the walls. There is a large fireplace on the second floor.
Buildings of this type were built in the 18th century. In the 17th–18th centuries, during the reign of Erekle II, the fortress underwent reconstruction and was in operation until the end of the 18th century.
Literature: მ უ ს ხ ე ლ ი შ ვ ი ლ ი დ., ციხე-ქალაქი უჯარმა, თბ., 1966; საქართველოს ისტორიისა და კულტურის ძეგლთა აღწერილობა, თბ., 2004; М е л и т а у р и К. Н., Крепости дофеодальной и раннефеодальной Грузии, [т.] 2, Тб., 1971; Ч у б и н а ш в и л и Г. Н., Архитектура Кахетии, Тб., 1959.
N. Alkhazashvili
