Two Churches on Anacopia Mountain (Abkhazia): An Attempt of Virtual Reconstruction

The article is devoted to the experience of constructing three-dimensional models of two churches on Mount Anakopia (Abkhazia), which houses one of the richest lapidary collections with relief images (X-XI centuries) in Abkhazia. Two monographs by one of the authors of this study (E. Endoltseva) were devoted to a detailed study of this lapidary collection, the themes and plots presented on the reliefs, their classification and dating, as well as the architectural features of these buildings. This study continues these research efforts. The article describes in detail the additional research carried out and the principles of reconstruction of the two churches. The text is accompanied by drawings of reconstructed facades and altar barriers from these churches published for the first time. The reconstruction used fragments of stone plastic found on Mount Anakopia. The reconstructed images of churches are placed in the artistic context of the era (Middle Byzantine period, 9th - 11th centuries). © 2024 Research Center of Medieval Art Vasile Dragut. All rights reserved.