Found­ed in 1106 in the west of Geor­gia, the Monastery of Gelati is a mas­ter­piece of the Gold­en Age of medieval Geor­gia, a peri­od of polit­i­cal strength and eco­nom­ic growth between the 11th and 13th cen­turies. It is char­ac­ter­ized by the facades of smooth­ly hewn large blocks, bal­anced pro­por­tions and blind arch­es for exte­ri­or dec­o­ra­tion. The Gelati monastery, one of the largest medieval Ortho­dox monas­ter­ies, was also a cen­tre of sci­ence and edu­ca­tion and the Acad­e­my it housed was one of the most impor­tant cen­tres of cul­ture in ancient Geor­gia.