Bodbe

Bodbe overlooks the Alazani valley in eastern Georgia and is revered as the resting place of Saint Nino, who brought Christianity to the Georgian kingdom. A church grew over her tomb, and the monastery became an episcopal seat with extensive lands. Its basilica remained an important place of pilgrimage through many centuries of changing fortunes in Kakheti.

In 1615 the army of Shah Abbas ravaged Bodbe during its campaigns in eastern Georgia. The monastery was subsequently restored, and its walls were strengthened with an additional low outer wall to support the damaged structure. Despite the devastation of war, the shrine of Saint Nino continued to draw the faithful, preserving the memory of a figure central to the Christian history of Georgia.