It’s already the 7th year that cathedral restoration work has begun in the village of Kumurdo, but in recent years work as part of the restoration hasn’t progressed too far, and this year nothing has been done at all.
In 2016, restoration work began on the 10th-century Kumurdo temple, as the locals call it, the Church of the Holy Ascension. At the start of the renovation work, it was said that the work would take 3 years, but in 2018, 2021 was given as the final figure, i.e. it turned out to be not 3, but 5 years. However, restoration of the temple was not completed in either 2021 or 2022, and this year work has not resumed at all.
In 2021, employees of “Architeks” LLC, engaged in the restoration, stated in an interview with Jnews that they intended to reach the dome in 2022, after which there should have been a pause to agree on the device and shape of the dome , and before that, it was planned to install a temporary dome, but also, it was expected that the restoration work would last several years. In June 2022, Jnews submitted a request to Georgia’s National Agency for the Protection of Cultural Heritage to find out what restoration work was underway and when it would be completed.
Kumurdo residents assure us that no restoration work has been carried out on the temple this year.
Jnews will send another request to Georgia’s National Agency for the Protection of Cultural Heritage. The response will be available in forthcoming Javakhk Information Center documents, if received by Jnews.
The village of Kumurdo is distinguished by its monumental temple built in the 10th century, which stands majestically to this day. It was built by Bishop Hovhannes in the years 957-964, during the reign of King Leo III of Abkhazia and Zviad Eristav. At that time, Kumurdo was the residence of Bagrat IV the Great (1027-1072), the Georgian ruler of Javakhk, who had the south gallery built. Restoration work began with the scandal surrounding the bones unearthed during archaeological excavations. More information on the history of the restoration can be found at the following links.