Kelasuri Wall
Encyclopedia
The Kelasuri Wall or Great Abkhazian Wall is a stone wall located to the east of Sukhumi
in Abkhazia
. The time of its construction is not known definitely; several dates ranging from antiquity to the seventeenth century were suggested, although more recent works have provisionally favoured construction in the 6th century AD. The wall featured about 300 towers, most of them now entirely or largely ruined.
The wall begins near the mouth of Kelasuri River where the ruins of a large tower remained. It goes to the east crossing Kodori River
near Tsebelda, then passes near Tkvarcheli
and terminates near the village of Lekukhona on the right bank of Inguri
.
Most of the fortifications are located in the western part of the wall between Kelasuri and Mokva rivers. Kelasuri's left bank and mountain passes were most heavily fortified. On the other hand only four towers were found between Tkvarcheli and Inguri.
All the towers are rectangular (7 by 8 or 8 by 9 metres), 4–6 m high and have shallow foundations. Each tower had a door in its southern wall framed by massive stone beams, sometimes a narrow staircase was also added. Embrasure
s were usually located in the towers' northern and western walls on the second floor.
According to Mikhail Ivashchenko, the wall was built by Byzantines
in the 4th century to protect their possessions and control mountain passes. He connected the name of the river Kelasuri with Byzantine Greek
kleisoura, a Byzantine territorial unit smaller than a theme. Several other historians supported this date although they could not agree on the length and orientation of the wall.
Yury Voronov (ru), a well-known Abkhazian historian and archaeologist, examined the Abkhazian wall in 1966-1971 and proposed a new date of its construction. According to Voronov, Levan II Dadiani
of Megrelia built it between 1628 and 1653 to protect his fiefdom from the Abkhaz (though at that time Principality of Abkhazia
was a nominal vassal of Megrelia). Per Voronov's work the embrasures in the wall were made for firearms; he also quoted Georgian historian Vakhushti
and Italian missionary Arcangelo Lamberti who both wrote about the wall built by Megrelian princes for protection from the Abkhaz.
Sukhumi
Sukhumi is the capital of Abkhazia, a disputed region on the Black Sea coast. The city suffered heavily during the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict in the early 1990s.-Naming:...
in Abkhazia
Abkhazia
Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...
. The time of its construction is not known definitely; several dates ranging from antiquity to the seventeenth century were suggested, although more recent works have provisionally favoured construction in the 6th century AD. The wall featured about 300 towers, most of them now entirely or largely ruined.
Location
Kodori River
The Kodori, also known as Kodor, is one of the two largest rivers of Abkhazia, along with the Bzyb. It is formed by the joining of the rivers Sak'en and Gwandra. The Kodori is first among Abkhazia's rivers with respect to average annual discharge and drainage basin area , and second after the...
near Tsebelda, then passes near Tkvarcheli
Tkvarcheli
Tkvarcheli is a town in Abkhazia. It is situated on the river Ghalidzga and the railroad connects it with Ochamchira.-History:...
and terminates near the village of Lekukhona on the right bank of Inguri
Inguri
The Inguri , is a river in western Georgia. It is 213 km long, originates in northeastern Svaneti near the region of Racha and plays an important role providing hydroelectric power to the area....
.
Most of the fortifications are located in the western part of the wall between Kelasuri and Mokva rivers. Kelasuri's left bank and mountain passes were most heavily fortified. On the other hand only four towers were found between Tkvarcheli and Inguri.
Towers
The wall was not continuous as its builders made use of natural obstacles such as steep slopes and gorges. 279 towers belonging to the wall have been identified, about a hundred of them are extant. The usual distance between towers is 40–120 m, where there was no continuous wall some towers were 300, 500 and 1000 m apart.All the towers are rectangular (7 by 8 or 8 by 9 metres), 4–6 m high and have shallow foundations. Each tower had a door in its southern wall framed by massive stone beams, sometimes a narrow staircase was also added. Embrasure
Embrasure
In military architecture, an embrasure is the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenel or crenelle...
s were usually located in the towers' northern and western walls on the second floor.
History of construction
Since the wall was first examined scientifically in early 19th century, many hypotheses on who and when built it were published. For example, the Swiss traveller Frédéric Dubois de Montpéreux asserted that the wall was built by Greeks in the last centuries BC to protect their colony of Dioscurias (which he erroneously placed near the Kodori capeAccording to Mikhail Ivashchenko, the wall was built by Byzantines
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
in the 4th century to protect their possessions and control mountain passes. He connected the name of the river Kelasuri with Byzantine Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
kleisoura, a Byzantine territorial unit smaller than a theme. Several other historians supported this date although they could not agree on the length and orientation of the wall.
Yury Voronov (ru), a well-known Abkhazian historian and archaeologist, examined the Abkhazian wall in 1966-1971 and proposed a new date of its construction. According to Voronov, Levan II Dadiani
Dadiani
Dadiani was a Georgian family of nobles, dukes and princes, and a ruling dynasty of the western Georgian province of Samegrelo.- The House of Dadiani :...
of Megrelia built it between 1628 and 1653 to protect his fiefdom from the Abkhaz (though at that time Principality of Abkhazia
Principality of Abkhazia
The Principality of Abkhazia emerged as a separate feudal entity in the 15th-16th centuries, amid the civil wars in the Kingdom of Georgia that concluded with the dissolution of the unified Georgian monarchy...
was a nominal vassal of Megrelia). Per Voronov's work the embrasures in the wall were made for firearms; he also quoted Georgian historian Vakhushti
Vakhushti
Vakhushti was a Georgian prince , geographer, historian and cartographer.- Life :A son of King Vakhtang VI of Kartli , he was born in Tbilisi, 1696...
and Italian missionary Arcangelo Lamberti who both wrote about the wall built by Megrelian princes for protection from the Abkhaz.