Abastumani
Encyclopedia
Abastumani is a townlet and climatic spa
in Adigeni Municipality, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Georgia
. It is located on the southern slopes of the Meskheti Range
(Lesser Caucasus
), in the small river valley of Otskhe, 25 km northeast of Adigeni
and 28 km west of Akhaltsikhe
. As of the 2002 census, it had a population of 1,368. The Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory
is located at Abastumani.
so named after a fortress whose ruins survive near the townlet. In the 16th century, it fell to the Ottoman Empire
under whose rule the area was deserted, but its hot springs
were appreciated and frequented by locals. Under the Russian rule
, a short-lived German
colony of Friedenthal emerged there in 1842. In the 1850s, it was recolonized by the Russians under the patronage of Viceroy
Mikhail Vorontsov
. The new settlement acquired the name Abbas-Tuman after a nearby located village and became popular for its climate and thermal waters. Its development as a resort is chiefly associated with Grand Duke George Alexandrovich
(1871–1899), a member of the Russian imperial family, who had retired there due to his ill-health. Abastumani acquired the status of a urban-type settlement
(Georgian: daba) under the Soviet Union in 1926. Tourism infrastructure has been renovated since the mid-2000s.
reaching 50% only in summer. The annual average number of hours of sunlight is 3,000. Average annual precipitation
is 626 mm. Average annual temperature is 6.4 to 6.5 °C (43.5 to 43.7 °F) in January and 17.2 °C (63 °F) in July. Abastumani's three hyperthermic springs (39-48.5 °C) are little mineralized, rich in sulfate-sodium chloride waters. They have long been used in the treatment of tuberculosis
. Abastumani is also a starting point for hikes into the Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park
.
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
in Adigeni Municipality, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
. It is located on the southern slopes of the Meskheti Range
Meskheti Range
Meskheti Range is a part of the Lesser Caucasus mountain range in Meskheti region, in southwestern Georgia....
(Lesser Caucasus
Lesser Caucasus
Lesser Caucasus is one of the two main mountain ranges of Caucasus mountains, of length about 600 km....
), in the small river valley of Otskhe, 25 km northeast of Adigeni
Adigeni
Adigeni is a district in Georgia's southern region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. Covering an area of about . As of 2002 it had a population of 20,752 people.- External links :* *...
and 28 km west of Akhaltsikhe
Akhaltsikhe
Akhaltsikhe is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. It is situated on the both banks of a small river Potskhovi, which separates the city to the old city in the north and new in the south. The name of the city translates from Georgian as "new fortress".- History...
. As of the 2002 census, it had a population of 1,368. The Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory
Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory
Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory currently renamed again as Abastumani Astrophysical Observatory was founded by the Academician Eugene Kharadze in 1932 on Mount Kanobili, near resort Abastumani Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory (GENAO) currently renamed again as Abastumani...
is located at Abastumani.
History
In medieval Georgia, the area of modern-day Abastumani was part of the district of OdzrkheOdzrkhe
Odzrkhe or Odzrakhe was a historic fortified town and the surrounding area in what is now Abastumani, Samtskhe-Javakheti region, southern Georgia. According to medieval Georgian historic tradition, it was founded by the mythic hero Odzrakhos of the Kartlosid line. The ruins of old fortifications...
so named after a fortress whose ruins survive near the townlet. In the 16th century, it fell to the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
under whose rule the area was deserted, but its hot springs
Hot Springs
Hot Springs may refer to:* Hot Springs, Arkansas** Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas*Hot Springs, California**Hot Springs, Lassen County, California**Hot Springs, Modoc County, California**Hot Springs, Placer County, California...
were appreciated and frequented by locals. Under the Russian rule
Georgia within the Russian Empire
Between 1801 and 1918 the country of Georgia was part of the Russian Empire. For centuries, the Muslim Ottoman and Persian empires had fought over various fragmented Georgian kingdoms and principalities but by the 18th century, a third imperial power, Russia, had emerged in the region. Since Russia...
, a short-lived German
Caucasus Germans
Caucasus Germans are part of the German minority in Russia and the Soviet Union. They migrated to the Caucasus largely in the first half of the 19th century and settled in the North Caucasus, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and in the region of Kars...
colony of Friedenthal emerged there in 1842. In the 1850s, it was recolonized by the Russians under the patronage of Viceroy
Viceroyalty of the Caucasus
The Viceroyalty of the Caucasus is a term used to denote the Imperial Russian administrative and political authority in the Caucasus region exercised through the offices of glavnoupravlyayushchiy and namestnik...
Mikhail Vorontsov
Mikhail Vorontsov
Mikhail Vorontsov may refer to:*Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov , Russian prince, field-marshal, statesman*Mikhail Illarionovich Vorontsov , Russian count, statesman, diplomat...
. The new settlement acquired the name Abbas-Tuman after a nearby located village and became popular for its climate and thermal waters. Its development as a resort is chiefly associated with Grand Duke George Alexandrovich
Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia
Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia, , was the third son of Alexander III and Empress Marie of Russia. He was named George after his mother's younger brother, King George I of Greece...
(1871–1899), a member of the Russian imperial family, who had retired there due to his ill-health. Abastumani acquired the status of a urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlement ; , selyshche mis'koho typu ) is an official designation for a type of locality used in some of the countries of the former Soviet Union...
(Georgian: daba) under the Soviet Union in 1926. Tourism infrastructure has been renovated since the mid-2000s.
Spa
Abastumani possesses a moderately dry mountainous climate, with relative humidityRelative humidity
Relative humidity is a term used to describe the amount of water vapor in a mixture of air and water vapor. It is defined as the partial pressure of water vapor in the air-water mixture, given as a percentage of the saturated vapor pressure under those conditions...
reaching 50% only in summer. The annual average number of hours of sunlight is 3,000. Average annual precipitation
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
is 626 mm. Average annual temperature is 6.4 to 6.5 °C (43.5 to 43.7 °F) in January and 17.2 °C (63 °F) in July. Abastumani's three hyperthermic springs (39-48.5 °C) are little mineralized, rich in sulfate-sodium chloride waters. They have long been used in the treatment of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. Abastumani is also a starting point for hikes into the Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park
Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park
The Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park is a protected area in central Georgia, situated in the Lesser Caucasus, southwest to the nation’s capital of Tbilisi....
.
Landmarks
Beyond being a spa town with functioning hotels and sanatoria, Abastumani houses several cultural landmarks documenting the townlet's medieval and modern history. These are:- The 14th-century church of St. George, which was repaired and its hitherto unknown medieval frescos discovered in 2008.
- The 13th-century ruined castle and a single arch bridgeArch bridgeAn arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
named after the medieval Queen Thamar. - The "New Zarzma" (Akhali Zarzma) church of St. Alexander Nevsky, a 19th-century small replica of the 14th-century Georgian cathedral of Zarzma. It was commissioned by Grand Duke George from the TbilisiTbilisiTbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
-based architect Otto Jacob Simons who built it between 1899 and 1902, marrying a medieval Georgian design with the contemporaneous architectural forms. Its interior was frescoed by the Russian painter Mikhail NesterovMikhail NesterovMikhail Vasilyevich Nesterov was a major representative of religious Symbolism in Russian art. He was a pupil of Pavel Tchistyakov at the Imperial Academy of Arts, but later allied himself with the group of artists known as the Peredvizhniki...
. - A bathhouse constructed on the Abastumani hot springs between 1879 and 1881 by the St. Petersburg-born physician of German descent Adolf Remmert (Адольф Александрович Реммерт; 1835—1902). Remmert died in Germany and, according to his will, was buried at a Catholic church in Abastumani, which has not survived.
- Winter and summer mansions of Grand Duke George designed by Otto Jacob Simons and built of stone and wood, respectively. Located on the opposite banks of the Otskhe, they were connected through a small bridge. The summer mansion was frequnted by the party officials in the Soviet era. In the 1990s, it was turned over to the Georgian Orthodox Church and converted into a St. Panteleimon nunnery. The building was destroyed in a fire on March 12, 2008, and is currently being rebuilt.