View source for Ninotsminda Cathedral

[[File:Ninotsminda Apse and Tower.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Apse and belltower of Ninotsminda Cathedral]]
'''Ninotsminda Cathedral''' ({{lang-ka|ნინოწმინდის მონასტერი}}) (c. 575) is located in the village of [[Sagarejo]], in the [[Kakheti]] region, [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]].

Ninotsminda Cathedral is highly significant to the development of Georgian architecture, as it predates [[Jvari Monastery]] in [[Mtskheta]], and served as a model for the development of the later [[tetraconch]] (four-apse) form. {{fact|date=June 2012}} The site is ruins today, with only the eastern [[apse]] and a portion of the western wall remaining.  Outlines of the foundations indicate that the church originally had an octagonal center, surrounded by corner niches. Historical records indicate that restoration work was undertaken in the 10th and 11th centuries, and also during 1671 and 1774. However, the cathedral collapsed during [[earthquake]]s in 1824 and 1848 and was not reconstructed.

The large [[brick]] [[belltower]] within the same complex dates from the reign of King [[Levan of Kakheti]] (1520-1574). The lower three stories served as a residence, each floor with a fireplace. The staggered placement of bricks on the exterior façade to form geometric patterns indicates the cultural influence of [[Safavid]] [[Persia]], as does the pointed arch over the entrance.

The Ninotsminda complex is surrounded by a fortification, with corner towers and a crenellated [[curtain wall (fortification)|curtain wall]], dating from the 16th-17th centuries. The fortified entrance gate has protruding towers with beehive [[machicolation]]s.

The complex is currently operated as a [[nunnery]] by the [[Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church|Georgian Orthodox Church]], and reconstruction work is underway.

==References==
{{commonscat|Ninotsminda Cathedral}}
*Rosen, Roger. ''Georgia: A Sovereign Country of the Caucasus.'' Odyssey Publications: Hong Kong, 1999. {{ISBN|962-217-748-4}}

{{Georgian Churches}}

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[[Category:6th-century churches]]
[[Category:Churches in Georgia (country)]]