Shkhepi Fortress

Shkhepi Fortress is located in Samegrelo, near Senaki. There are four construction layers on the monument, the earliest dates back to the beginning of the IV century, and the latest - to the XVI-XVII centuries. It was an important fortress in the IV-XIX centuries, and for some time was also the residence of the Dadiani dynasty. The history of Shkhepi Fortress dates back to the founding of the Kingdom of Egrisi and it was one of the links in the overall chain of protection of the kingdom. There is no written record of the early period of the Skhepi Fortress. There are two records of the late centuries when the fortress belonged to the Dadiani dynasty, the ruler of Samegrelo. According to Vakhushti Bagrationi, in 1582, Mamia Dadiani captured the young Leon, who was a rival for the throne, and imprisoned him in the Shkhepi fortress, who could not stand the captivity, fell from the fortress fence and died. The second information tells us that Levan, the King of Imereti and Mamia Dadiani fought in Odishi in 1590. Mamia Dadiani won this war and imprisoned King Levan in Shkhepi fortress. The king died in the castle.

Architecture

Shkhepi Castle is long shaped construction in the plan. It includes two gates, three towers, a small hall church, a reservoir and a fence. The south side of the fort is a precipice, the rest of the sides are easily accessible, so it was surrounded by a deep and wide trench. The wall thickness of the fence is of different sizes and varies from 180-150-120 cm. Inside the fence, there are two towers. One tower is cylindrical and is built at the south-east corner of the fence, the other tower is in the shape of a quadrangular pyramid and is built into the wall on the north side of the fence. The castle has only one, narrow access path the north-west and the entrance was arranged from here. The entrance opening with its architecture is well preserved to this day. The north-western part of the castle is divided into storerooms. In one of the storerooms, there is a large stone fireplace with its chimney. Inside the castle, in the north-eastern section, are the remains of a small church. In the center of the eastern section is a large reservoir. The water level in the basin is almost the same in winter and summer. In the late centuries, a special aqueduct was built of ceramic pipes. To the west of the long courtyard at the top of the castle is a small courtyard. After filling up this yard by half, the door was cut high in the late Middle Ages. The small area in front of the door was enclosed by a fence in the XVI-XVII centuries. In these thin walls, there are simple gun-ports. To the west of the door is a tower, on the wall of which there is an extensive inscription, from which we learn that someone called Shedan had built the tower "Karis Tvali" ("The Eye of the Door).