Archaeological excavations confirm that the territory of Tbilisi was inhabited as early as the 4th millennium BC . The oldest source mention dates back to the second half of the 4th century , when a fortress was built in these places during the reign of King Varaz-Baku . At the end of the 4th century, Tbilisi became the residence of the Persian official Pitakhshi. From the middle of the 5th century , it again passed into the hands of the kings of Kartli. Vakhtan Gorgasali restored and expanded it, therefore he is considered the founder of the city. According to some historians, King Vakhtang Gorgasali (who reigned in the second half of the 5th century) was actually responsible for the revival and reconstruction of the city, rather than its founding.

Mtskheta is a city in Georgia , the administrative center of Mtskheta Municipality and Mtskheta-Mtianeti Region . The historical monuments of Mtskheta are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List . The population is 7,940 people ( 2014 ). There is a railway station, food and light industry enterprises, and the Zemo Avchala hydroelectric power station. The city has many cultural (higher education institutions, theater, museum) and architectural monuments. Geography Located at the confluence of the Mtkvari and Aragvi rivers , on both banks of the Mtkvari and the right bank of the Aragvi. Railway station on the Tbilisi -Samtredia line. 480 m above sea level , 21 km from Tbilisi (by rail).

The name of the temple has a historical basis. In the 30s of the 4th century, from the very first years of the adoption of Christianity, King Mirian III erected a wooden cross on this site, which was later worshiped not only by Georgians but also by Christians throughout the Caucasus. In the second half of the 6th century ( 545 - 586 ), the Kartli patriarch Guaram built a small church to the north of the cross . At the end of the 6th century and the beginning of the 7th century ( 586/587 - 604/605 ) , the son of Guaram, the patriarch Stephanos I , with the participation of his brothers Demeter and Adarnas ( 604/605 - 634/635 ) and other members of the patriarchal family , built a large temple next to the small temple , which was topped with a wooden cross (the pedestal of the cross remains in the church to this day).