Georgian Monastery on Cyprus

The Gialia monastery is the ruined medieval Georgian Orthodox monastery located in a forest in northwest Cyprus.

According to sources, Georgians served in the monastery from the 10th century and continued to belong to the Georgians until the 14th century. 

The ruins were identified in 1981, but in 2006 a systematic archaeological research began after the Georgian and Cypriot governments agreed to jointly investigate the ruins, which continued until 2010.

During the investigation, Georgian paintings and inscriptions from the 13th and 14th centuries were discovered. Fragments of wall paintings, ceramics, metals, bone and glass were also discovered.

The Georgian government organized and financed different activities in 2014 to clean and identify ruins of the St. George's church, dating back to the 11th and 12th centuries.

From the 29th of September to October 10th, in 2015, archaeological works, as well as 3D scans of the Gialia Monastery complex, were organized in the Republic of Cyprus. The Georgian Gialia Monastery is considered the most important tourist object on the island.

Nina Ioseliani