An international team from five countries, comprising architects, designers, filmmakers and conservation specialists, is seeking to save an approximately 1,100-year-old Georgian church in north-eastern Turkey that is at risk of collapse.
According to a press release from Spanish architect and project coordinator Tassilo de la Torre Schönborn, Nuka Sakdari Church is in Artvin Province and is the last surviving part of a former monastic complex.
The church stands on a narrow platform on a valley slope in an area inaccessible to vehicles, and part of its stone roof has collapsed. Nikolai Marr photographed the building in 1904, but no complete architectural documentation of the church has yet been produced.
From 7 to 20 October, specialists from France, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Argentina will produce plans, sections and elevations, as well as a site plan, to prepare for repair work.
Documenting the church will be challenging
Measurements will be carried out both manually and using technological equipment. The interior will be laser-scanned, while the exterior, which is difficult to survey because of its position on the slope, will be photographed by drone to produce a second point cloud.
Because of the site’s isolation, members of the expedition plan to live inside the church itself for two weeks, sleeping, cooking and working there. There is no electricity, mobile phone signal or accommodation near the site.
“Nothing can move forward without drawings: no permit, no funding, not even a single scaffolding pole. The lack of documentation is what keeps the roof open,” Tassilo de la Torre Schönborn explained.
The team will submit the resulting documentation to the heritage authority in Erzurum. The aim is for stabilisation work to begin in 2027 and to be carried out by restoration architects and specialists from Turkey, subject to approval by the relevant authorities.
Film to document the church and expedition
A film lasting approximately 10 to 20 minutes will also be produced during the expedition, documenting both the investigation of the church and the team’s life at the site. The film will promote the project and help raise the funds needed for conservation work.
The organisers say the film project would also represent a first for the region’s religious heritage.
“Until now, no documentary has ever been made about the churches of the historic Tao-Klarjeti region,” they said.
The initiative is continuing to seek funding, equipment and expertise for the expedition and subsequent stages of the project. The research results are also expected to be presented in publications specialising in architecture, conservation and culture.
