The Legacy of Georgia project is dedicated to the heritage of Georgian culture and the discovery of its main values - land, faith and language.
Land.
Many legends testify to the unique territorial location of Georgia and one of them says - When God distributed the land to the nations, everyone lined up and waited humbly, day and night, under the rains and winds, for a certain period of time. During this period the Georgian people drank, had fun and rejoiced much to everyone's delight, not thinking about making their mark. But when Georgians came to God for the land, the Lord asked - "Where were you all this time, because nothing was left but desert and lofty mountains?"
The Georgians answered: "We drank, ate, and had fun glorifying Your name and thanking You that we are on this land!" To which the Lord replied - "you are very sincere and kind people - Here is my favorite place, between the snowy mountains and dry desert lands, between the two seas, with fertile land warmed by the sun all year round, your fate. For a long time I kept it for a special occasion and here it is"
Georgian geography includes 5 climate zones, and the main natural resources are thermal and mineral springs.The altitude difference from the north to the south is over 5,000 meters. The lush subtropical vegetation of the west is replaced by desert areas in the east and snowy mountain tops in the north all year round. The nature of this region is completely corresponds to the words - The Garden of Paradise.
Faith.
The history of Georgian Orthodoxy dates back to the 4th century AD, thus showing the Georgian kingdom - Iberia, one of the oldest nations to adopt Christianity.
There are many holy places and miraculous legends on the territory of modern Georgia: How the Chiton of the Lord was moved from Jerusalem to Mtskheta, where the majestic cedar grew on the burial site, marking the site of the Svetitskhoveli Temple, a worship center for all Georgians and a must-visit program for all pilgrims.
The fact that the Virgin Mary herself is the guardian of Georgia, who accepted it as an apostolic destiny at the time of the persecution of Christians in Jerusalem and throughout Israel, and gave it in the vision of St. Nino, thanks to the missionary activities and good deeds of which, the Georgian King Mirian III and his wife Nana have adopted Christianity as a state religion for their people, sincerely and voluntarily, keeping the love and gratitude to God in their hearts. The Georgian heritage of the Orthodox Church includes unique in antiquity, architecture and painting buildings that have no analogues, acheiropaeic faces and images, as well as many relics, artifacts and miraculous remains of Holy preachers of the Word of God, who modestly lived, served and cared for the Georgian people all this time until St. Gabriel of Samtavro, who died in 1995 and was canonized in 2012 as one of the saints of the Orthodox Georgian Church.
Language (culture)
Georgian language has its roots in the I century BC and has some similarities with the language of the Arameans - Semitic tribes that came to Syria and Northern Mesopotamia from the south at the end of the I millennium BC. The first evidence of the language of the Iberian tribes (inhabiting the territory of modern Georgia) appeared in the II century AD in the works of the Roman linguist Mark Fronto, and the first manuscripts date back to the V century. They were made on parchment, and even some manuscript artifacts in the Georgian language were found in the Judean Desert. The Georgian culture, like the Georgian language, is a rather conservative structure, which has not been influenced by the ethnic evolution and globalization of the world around it. The Georgian kingdom in its heyday stretched from sea to sea (from the eastern coast of the Black Sea to the western coast of the Caspian Sea) and was a powerful state. Its borders, apart from its own Georgian territory, also included parts of Armenia and Shirvan, the western part of the Caspian Sea coast near the Kura River delta. For centuries, Georgia has been under attack from neighboring states in the Middle East, where Islamic culture dominated - the Mongols, the Ottoman Empire and the Safavid Iran - only a few of them. This is evidenced by the numerous fortresses, rocky cities and monasteries that served as shelters for the civilian population, which have preserved their proud walls to this day. One of the unique features of the Georgian culture is that Georgia is the birthplace of the vine and the home of winemaking. Traces of grape leaves of the past geological epochs were found on the territory of Georgia, and during archeological excavations in the burial grounds of the Bronze Age, jars with grape seed remnants were found. Over the millennia of development of winemaking in Georgia, the country has developed its own local grape varieties and developed unique technologies of wine production, which have no analogues in the world.
The wine drinking culture in Georgia also has its own peculiarities and mainly includes the family format of communication between people - respect of the elders and kindness to the guests. Long feasts, during which legends about glorious times of Georgian history, about its great Kings, about feats of the Georgian people, wonders of its sanctuaries, and about beauty of its nature, will inspire everyone who has an opportunity to touch this treasure.
Project mission:
The Georgian heritage, which is based on the three icons described above - land, faith and language - is worthy to be captured in eternity, using the most modern technologies and preserved as a great legacy, one of the most unique and distinctive cultures on earth.
Project objective:
To provide fair, truthful and competent information to all visitors from all over the world, based on historical facts and primary sources. About the birth of Christianity in Georgia, its formation and influence on the formation of Georgian culture and the life of the people as a whole, the geographical features of the territory, inspiring its natural uniqueness of places, as well as historical epochal events and people who lived in those great times.
To capture and preserve in digital format all sacred places, historical sites and unique natural beauties of Georgia and present them as a fully open catalogue within the framework of a full-fledged cultural and educational program.
Project format:
Digital catalogue is an Internet platform, the main tool of which is the virtual panorama of 360* and 360* video, collected in a single resource, divided into categories, geographical areas and historical segments. With a correctly selected description of all places and locations, subjects and details, as well as events and personalities. This will give the opportunity to feel the unique atmosphere of each place and to prepare for its visit, with due respect and understanding of all historical value, authenticity and greatness of Georgian culture.
