Ancient Christian temple is found in Sochi territory

In Imereti lowland archeologists found the most ancient Christian temple in the territory of the country, “NTK” TV informed. Excavation had been on already a half a year at that place. From its three sides the temple was surrounded with protective porches which later were used as tombs. In one of them the archeologists found remains of a married couple. Valuable details - a bronze fastener for the Bible, a cross that had crowned the dome of the temple, fragments of little icon-lamps - were also found. Scientists were surprised with abundance of multi-coloured glass similar to the West-European stained-glass windows. Besides the relic building as the experts assure, was constructed in view of the climatic conditions of Sochi.
The senior scientific employee of the archeology institute of the Russian Academy of Science Ekaterina Armarchuk informed that presumably the territory of southern Sochi was a part of the Abkhazian empire ruled by Leonid's dynasty approximately since the VIII till X centuries. The temple was dated about the IX-X centuries A.D.
The temple was destroyed by a strong fire, the archeologists assure. Now they give the survived artefacts to the Sochi museum of history. However most likely the finds won’t be stored in the town for long. Now the archeology institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences negotiates with Olympstroy Company about creation of an open-air museum on the place of the found temple.
If the temple gets the status of a museum, restorers will replace archeologists to recreate what had been lost eleven centuries ago.

Photo: Ivan Zhuravlyov / Yugopolis