The VI century Georgian Orthodox monastery is built on a hill opposite Mtskheta, at the confluence of Aragvi and Mtkvari rivers. Shortly after the adoption of Christianity, King Mirian III erected an enormous wooden cross on this site. In the 2nd half of the VI century Guaram, the ruler of Kartli, built a small church beside the Holy Cross. The church is included on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.

This Georgian architectural wonder dating back to the XI century has served as the religious center of the country for hundreds of years. The complex includes the church, a gate, a bell tower, castles, and clerical residences. The mantles of Christ and of the Prophet Elijah are both preserved in the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral. The tombs of Tbilisi's founder, King Vakhtang Gorgasali is also inside the building. The cathedral is included on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.

In Mtskheta there is an active Samtavro convent (the 11 th century) in which the ruler Mirian and his wife Nana, the first to accept Christianity from St. Nino in 337, are buried. The convent was constructed in 1820 instead of a small ancient wooden church of the 4 th century erected by the king Mirian. Its dome and some of the parts were reconstructed after the earthquake in the 13 th – 14 th centuries with addition of the sanctuary screen. The three-storied bell tower was built in the 15 th – 16 th centuries. The frescos there are dated the 16 th – the 17 th centuries. In the 17 th century the convent was renovated for the last time.

The monastery is located 8 km from Mtskheta, on the left bank of the Mtkvari River. It was constructed in the beginning of the second half of the VI century by one of the Assyrian fathers named Shio. The complex includes facilities of different time periods: a cave church, the Church of St. John the Baptist, a bell tower, the church of Shio, St. Mary’s Assumption Cathedral with its tower, refectory, and rock-cut caves - reservoirs, clergy houses, a spring, a water supply system and the Ascension Church.