Sights of Georgia in Gori - the ancient temple of Ateni Sioni built in the 7th century.

In the land of Shida Kartli, Gori Municipality, Not very far from the village of Ateni, in the valley of the same name, is the Ateni Zion. It is located on the edge of a steep hill. The building dates back to the beginning of the 7th century.

It is a cross-domed church, of the type of a four-apse cathedral. Its walls are built of hewn blocks of greenish-gray sandstone, and stones of other colors were also used in the construction.

The square under the dome of the temple is its core in composition. The spherical octagonal dome, the throat of which has four windows, rests on the projection of the apse. The dome itself is quite wide and low, its neck is very massive. According to the layout, the open four-sided domed space with apses forms the shape of a cross. In each corner of the cross there is one room connected to the central space of the temple. The altar rises two steps.

The priest's residence and the corresponding apse are located in front of the western apse of the altar. This makes the east-west axis longer than the south-north axis. The entrance to the temple is from the south and north. In the corners of the roof, southeast and southwest, there are images of sheep's heads, and the northeast corner is decorated with a dome of a smaller version of the temple.

A distinctive feature of the eastern and southern facades is the abundance of decoration. The windows of the temple are decorated with protruding frames. The main entrance to the temple is from the south. The vestibule is decorated with double capitals in the form of balls, bases and decorative half-columns.