Medieval Church on Katskhi Pillar, from Georgia (Caucasus) c.900 CE: this hermitage was built on an enormous limestone pillar, and it includes a chapel, hermit cells, a wine cellar and a crypt; it was built by a group of ascetics known as stylites, who often lived/prayed atop pillars [3903×5122]

This giant block of limestone is known as Katskhi Pillar or *Katskhis Sveti,* and it’s located in a remote valley in Western Georgia (the country, not the state) where it has been venerated as a “pillar of life” for hundreds of years.

The church that stands atop Katskhi Pillar is part of a tiny hermitage that was originally constructed during the 9th-10th centuries CE. Researchers believe that it was built by a group of Christian ascetics known as Stylites, who are sometimes described as “Pillar Saints,” because they lived, prayed and/or fasted on pillars and cliffs, often in total isolation, in an effort to bring themselves closer to God. The Stylite tradition was born in Syria during the 5th century CE, when a hermit known as Simeon the Elder allegedly climbed up onto a pillar and then stayed there for nearly 40 years, giving rise (no pun intended) to Christian Stylitism.

That tradition survived for about 1,000 years after it was created, eventually spreading to other parts of the Near East, the Mediterranean, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe, but it began to die out during the late Middle Ages. By the end of the 16th century, Stylitism had essentially gone extinct.

Researchers don’t really know how the monks at Katskhi Pillar originally gained access to the top of the column, or how they were able to transport their building materials up to the site where the hermitage was built.

There’s evidence that people were still living in the hermitage up until the mid-1400s, and that it was abandoned shortly thereafter. The circumstances surrounding the site’s abandonment are unclear, but there are several chaotic events that may have played a role, as the Kingdom of Georgia was invaded by Turkoman forces on multiple occasions throughout the 1400s, and the kingdom itself collapsed in 1466; the Ottomans then conquered most of Georgia.

The structures at the top of Katskhi Pillar lay abandoned for nearly 500 years after that. No one was able to reach the top of the column during that period, and very little was known about the ruins that lay scattered at the top, as knowledge of the site’s origin and history was gradually lost over time. Many local legends were created in order to fill in those blanks.

The hermitage was not visited again until July 29th, 1944, when a mountaineer finally ascended to the top of the column with a small team of researchers, and the group was able to perform the first archaeological survey of the ruins. They found that the structure included three hermit cells, a chapel, a wine cellar, and a small crypt that contained a single set of human remains, likely belonging to one of the monks who had inhabited the site during the Middle Ages.

A metal ladder (often referred to as the “stairway to heaven”) was ultimately installed into the side of the pillar in order to make it easier for both researchers and tourists to gain access to the ruins at the top.

This hermitage briefly became active again in the early 1990s, when a small group of monks attempted to revive the Stylite tradition. A Georgian Orthodox monk named Maxime Qavtaradze then lived alone at the top of Katskhi Pillar for almost 20 years, beginning in 1995 and ending with his death in 2014. His remains are now buried at the base of the pillar.

The hermitage is no longer accessible to the public, and it’s currently uninhabited, but it is still visited by local monks who often climb to the top of the pillar in order to pray. There is also an active monastery complex at the base of the pillar, and a temple known as the Church of the Simeon Stylites is located at the bottom.

There are still many unanswered questions about the history of Katskhi Pillar, especially during the pre-Christian era. Some researchers believe that the pillar was once used as a site where votive offerings could be made to pagan deities, as pre-Christian idols have been unearthed around the base of the column. According to local tradition, the pillar itself was once venerated by pagan communities, but it’s difficult to determine whether or not those claims are just part of the mythos that has developed around Katskhi Pillar, particularly given its mysterious reputation.