Saberé, Monastery of the Gareja Desert

Saberé

One of about thirty monasteries of the Gareji desert, located 40 km northeast of the Lavra of David. It consists of several cave complexes and dates from the IX - X centuries. This date is conditional and based on the analysis of fresco images: known to science historical sources do not contain any information about this monastery. The frescoes preserved here for Georgia are unique – a number of pictorial and compositional techniques are nowhere else found, and in their picturesque manner, they, according to experts, “reflect the eastern Syrian and Asia Minor traditions in the purest form, in particular, close to the archaic paintings of the IX - X centuries. cave monasteries of Cappadocia” (for this we refer to the book by T.S. Shevyakova “Monumental Painting of the Early Middle Ages of Georgia”. Tbilisi, 1983.

Unfortunately, the frescoes are in a damaged state, but even the remaining fragments give an impression strong enough to decide to go to these remote places from civilization and good roads. Plus, spectacular landscapes, the opportunity to show wonders of dexterity, climbing rocky rashes, and, with some luck, a meeting with wild animals in the face of wolves, foxes and large predatory birds – of course, at a safe distance.

You can get here by dirt roads with off-road elements and accompanying attractive desert landscapes. Saberyebi Monastery itself remained in obscurity for a long time and was discovered only in 1950.

• Transport, guide, water, WI-FI.