The church of the Holy Prophet Elijah stands in Natsiskvilari. The name of the village is itself a piece of local history: the Georgian prefix na- marks a place where something once stood, and tsiskvili is a mill. Natsiskvilari reads as the place of former mills and preserves the memory of watermills on the mountain streams.
The village lies north-west of Lagodekhi, where the plain meets the foothills of the Caucasus range. The streams that gave the place its name run down the same slopes on which the Lagodekhi reserve begins. In the Georgian tradition Elijah is linked with weather and harvest, his churches were often built on high ground, and his feast day remained one of the main village celebrations of the year.
The church is active and quiet, visited more by people from the surrounding villages than by travellers. The usual rules apply: covered clothing, quiet, and photography inside is best agreed first.
📌 In brief
- An Orthodox church of the Prophet Elijah, linked in folk tradition with weather and harvest
- North-west of Lagodekhi, right at the foothills of the Caucasus range
- The toponym reads as the place of former mills and refers to the streams around
🚗 Getting there
- Landmark - the village of Natsiskvilari north-west of Lagodekhi, along the road that follows the foothills
- The navigator opens with the Build Route button
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