John of Bodbe
Before the abolition of the Bodbe diocese by the Russian exarchs, its last prelate was the renowned church figure Ioane Makashvili. Through his efforts, in 1823, the monastery was once again adorned and embellished: gates were added to the temple from the south and north, and false domes were also installed (the false domes and gates were removed during restoration in the twentieth century), the interior was painted, a new iconostasis was made (the iconostasis underwent a full restoration in 2014), and an episcopal palace with a court church was built. With the death of Ioane Makashvili (1837), the Bodbe diocese was abolished, and both the monastery and the seminary were dissolved. John of Bodbe rests in front of the southern pier of the temple.
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