# New Athos Monastery
- URL: https://explore-georgia.ge/en/places/new-athos-monastery
- Type: place to visit
- Region: Abkhazia
- Coordinates: 43.08809, 40.82122

The New Athos Monastery, in full the Monastery of the Holy Apostle Simon the Canaanite, stands in the town of New Athos in Gudauta Municipality, Abkhazia, at the foot of Mount Athos, about 75 metres above sea level. From Sokhumi it is roughly 26 kilometres along the coast road. The complex occupies an artificially levelled terrace on the hillside.

The ensemble is a quadrangle of monastic ranges, in the centre of which rises the five-domed Cathedral of St Panteleimon, built between 1888 and 1900. The cathedral is 53.3 metres long and 33.7 metres wide, and its central dome reaches 40 metres; it was designed in the Neo-Byzantine manner that spread through Russian church architecture at the turn of the twentieth century. The interior was painted in 1911–1914 by masters from the village of Palekh in Vladimir province and a group of Moscow artists led by Mikhail Molov and Aleksei Serebryakov. It is the largest church building in Abkhazia.

In the middle of the western range stands the bell tower, about 50 metres high; beneath it is the former refectory, whose walls carry frescoes by the Olovyannikov brothers, painters from the Volga region. The musical chimes of the tower were a gift of Emperor Alexander III. The monastery has six churches in all, among them the gate church of the Ascension and the churches of St Andrew the First-Called, of the Holy Fathers of Athos, of the martyr Hieron and of the icon of the Mother of God "the Deliverer".

The monastery was built beside the older church of Simon the Canaanite; by tradition the apostle is buried here, and a grotto nearby, where by tradition he prayed in solitude, was consecrated in 1884.

## History

The site was chosen in 1875 by monks of the Russian St Panteleimon Monastery on Mount Athos, and building began soon after. The task was enormous: part of the mountainside was cut away to clear the platform and thousands of tonnes of earth and rock were carted off. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 the unfinished monastery was plundered.

Rebuilding began in 1880 and went on for two decades under the patronage of Emperor Alexander III. The ensemble was complete by 1900 and was consecrated on 28 September of that year. Until the revolution of 1917 New Athos was one of the principal spiritual centres of the Caucasus.

In 1924 the Soviet authorities closed the monastery; the buildings served as warehouses, and during the war of 1992–1993 a military hospital was housed here. The monastery has been in use again since 1994. The Georgian Orthodox Church regards the territory as its canonical jurisdiction; since 2011 the complex has been used by the self-proclaimed Holy Metropolis of Abkhazia, which no Orthodox church recognises. In 2006 Georgia listed the monastery as an immovable cultural monument of national significance.

## Visit info

The monastery stands above the town of New Athos, on a terrace cut into the foot of Mount Athos, so the way to it is uphill. The cathedral is a working church; check visiting times on the spot.

Abkhazia is an occupied territory. Under Georgian law entry to the region is lawful only from the Georgian-controlled side, through the Enguri crossing; entry from Russia is a breach of Georgian law. The actual conditions of movement and the documents required change, so check the current rules before travelling.

## Tips

Beside the monastery stands the older church of Simon the Canaanite, and nearby is the grotto where by tradition the apostle prayed. The New Athos Cave opens in the Iverian Mountain in the same town.

## Safety

The monastery stands well above the town, so allow for the climb. Consular assistance in the occupied territory is limited, so arrange travel insurance and documents in advance.

## Sources

- [New Athos Monastery — Georgian Wikipedia](https://ka.wikipedia.org/wiki/ახალი_ათონის_მონასტერი)
- [New Athos Monastery — English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Athos_Monastery)
- [New Athos Monastery — Russian Wikipedia](https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Новоафонский_монастырь)
- [New Athos Monastery — Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1996781)

## This page in other languages

- [ქართული](https://explore-georgia.ge/ka/adgilebi/akhali-atonis-monasteri)
- [Русский](https://explore-georgia.ge/ru/mesta/novoafonskii-monastyr)