The place is venerated by the Armenian community of Ninotsminda and known by the name Halacha. The name sounds both in Russian and in Armenian, yet what it means no one undertakes to explain: among the Armenian shrines of the plateau such local by-names are often older than the buildings themselves.
Ninotsminda stands on the Javakheti plateau at a height where winter is long and summer short. It is the administrative centre of the district and one of the most Armenian towns of Georgia. The neighbouring shrines are widely scattered: the church of St. Jacob at Patara Khanchali about four kilometres away, the ruins of the Armenian church of Didi Khanchali four and a half.
The place is in town and easy to reach, though it need not be open at all hours. People behave here as in a church: quietly, in modest dress, moving nothing. In winter the town is cold and windy.
⛪ For pilgrims
- A revered place of the town Armenian community
- Ninotsminda, the administrative centre of the plateau
- The name Halacha sounds in two languages
🚗 Getting there
- Landmark: the town of Ninotsminda, Samtskhe-Javakheti; about sixteen kilometres to Akhalkalaki
- The Build Route button will show the exact way
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