page_title: Bochorma fortress
section_title: Architecture
hierarchical_section_title: Bochorma fortress / Architecture
caption_attribution_description: ქართული: ბოჭორმის წმინდა გიორგის ეკლესია English: Bochorma st. George church
context_page_description: The Bochorma fortress is a medieval architectural complex in eastern Georgia, located in the Tianeti Municipality in the region of Kakheti. Situated on a high mount on the Iori River, the complex consists of a castle and a domed dodecagonal church, both dated to the 10th century, as well as another small hall church, and some other accessory structures. All structures within the complex are half-ruined or significantly damaged. They are all inscribed on the list of the Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance.
context_section_description: The Bochorma complex is located 2 km east of the modern village of Bochorma, on the left bank of the Iori, overlooking the river valley from a 300 m-high mountain ridge on the southwestern slopes of the Gombori Range. The fortress is relatively easily accessible from the east. Otherwise, its walls follow the ragged mountainous terrain, making most of the surrounding natural defenses. The fortress occupies the area of 1.5 ha. The inner part of the citadel stands on the irregular ground and is surrounded by a high curtain wall, with towers. The citadel contains the domed church of Saint George, a palace, a small hall church, a cylindrical tower, and some other accessory structures.    
  The church of Saint George is a hexaconch—a six-apse domed building—originally constructed in the 10th or 11th century and since then remodeled several times. Built of sandstone, both inner and outer walls were once faced with dressed stone slabs. The entrances are located in the southwestern and northwestern apses. The southwestern porch is topped by a belfry, which is a 17th-century annex. The altar apse is demarcated by an 18th-century brick iconostasis. The outer layout is dodecagonal, each facet covered by a pitched roof. The base of the dome, now in ruins, is pierced with six windows. The interior bears frescoes, which are, judging from the style of paintings, dated to the early 12th century and in a very poor state of preservation. These includes scenes from the lives of Jesus and Saint George and portraits of various saints. In the lowest register of the northeastern conch of the church is a donor who is identified with King David IV of Georgia (r. 1089-1125). He stands next to an image of the Byzantine emperor Constantine the Great and his mother Helena. The iconography illustrates David's promotion of his status as a Christian monarch and a claim to symbolic succession to the Byzantine emperor in the region, which he had only acquired in 1104.      
  A nearby small church is a hall church design, with the dimensions of 4.7 × 3.7 m, built of cobblestone. It is a late medieval structure, with a semicircular apse and the southern doorway.
caption: Bochorma church of St. George.
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot A560", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image DateTime": "2006:06:15 18:06:20", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "196", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "180", "Thumbnail YResolution": "180", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "5108", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "5273", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/320", "EXIF FNumber": "71/10", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2006:06:15 18:06:20", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2006:06:15 18:06:20", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "5", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "133/16", "EXIF ApertureValue": "181/32", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "11/4", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "29/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1600", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1200", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "1600", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "1200", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "3334", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "64000/9", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "1200000/169", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}