In the vicinities of Sukhum on a cozy coastal terrace among heavy thickets you will see the brickwork of ancient walls with big gaping breaches. These are the ruins of Kelasuri Monastery - a very interesting monument of local architecture of the Middle Ages. The ancient icon settings, church utensils, bell fragments related to the 11 th -15 th centuries were found there in 1885. The monastery was a big cult complex inside which survived the ruins of the big temple consisting of one big room and two smaller ones. A narrow window and two high are visible in the destroyed altar. On the floor there are several fragments of plaster with traces of rich frescos which once covered the walls. Near the temple stand the ruins of a rectangular building, a later built church and other structures surrounded by a massive wall with the big stone arch entrance facing the precipice.
To the south of the monastery on the right bank of the Kelasuri there is a limestone rock with the fragments of ancient walls consisting of its remaining 5-6 m high sides. |
