The Gelati Rehabilitation Temporary Committee presented its 2023-2025 activity report at an international conference held in Tbilisi.

The two-year report encompasses the updated management plan project for the Gelati Monastery World Heritage site, issues concerning temporary roofing and scaffolding installation for the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Mother of God, structural research and monitoring of the cathedral, wall paintings and mosaics, and the Gelati Monastery master plan.

Georgia’s Minister of Culture Tinatin Rukhadze stated that the Committee had carried out “invaluable work.”

She expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, the Georgian government, the Patriarchate and personally to the Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia, as well as to all parties involved in the Gelati rehabilitation process.

“The draft decision of the World Heritage Committee has already been published on UNESCO’s website and will be discussed in July. The document acknowledges the Georgian government’s efforts regarding the conservation status of Gelati Monastery, to fully follow the recommendations of the World Heritage Committee’s advisory mission in conservation and rehabilitation work of the monument.

I want to express particular gratitude to the Georgian Patriarchate as the patron of the monument. There were many difficulties. Now we see that good cooperation between parties creates a completely new experience in cultural heritage protection. Our activities largely focus on preserving monuments and cultural heritage. This defines our identity and culture,” Rukhadze stated.