Mirzoev Sulphur Baths on Abano Street

Why is it significant?

Gaze across the row of low brick domes rising organically from the warm earth along historic Abano Street.

Key Facts

Open the walk

Gaze across the row of low brick domes rising organically from the warm earth along historic Abano Street. These subterranean bathhouses sit directly atop natural thermal springs that have bubbled from subterranean fissures at constant temperatures between forty and forty-five degrees Celsius for centuries. According to royal chronicles, King Vakhtang Gorgasali discovered these steaming waters in the fifth century while hunting with his prized falcon in the dense woodlands along the river gorge. Deeply impressed by the healing warmth of the waters, the king ordered his capital moved here from ancient Mtskheta, bestowing the name Tbilisi from the Old Georgian word tbili, meaning warm.

Notice how the hemispherical domes are topped with delicate circular glass lanterns that ventilate the underground vaulted chambers while casting soft beams of natural daylight onto the steaming water. The masonry showcases traditional thin plinthite bricks laid in graceful concentric rings reminiscent of Persian Safavid engineering. For over fifteen hundred years, these bath complexes functioned as the beating heart of social life in the South Caucasus. Merchants traveling along the Great Silk Road gathered inside the hot chambers to negotiate trade agreements, poets recited verses to the gentle cadence of flowing water, and local families hosted elaborate celebrations.

In May 1829, thirty-year-old Russian poet Alexander Pushkin visited these domed halls during his Caucasian journey. Captivated by the skill of the local bath attendants known as mekise, Pushkin famously declared that never in his life had he encountered anything more luxurious than the Tiflis baths, noting they effortlessly surpassed the grandest hammams of Constantinople. The mekise rubbed guests with rough wool mittens and lathered them in mounds of foaming soap before immersing them in soothing mineral baths.

As twilight settles across the gorge, gentle plumes of mineral steam drift upward into the evening breeze, suffusing the stone street with a comforting mineral scent. The contrast between the earthy terracotta domes and the towering cliffs of Narikala creates an unforgettable panorama of ancient urban resilience. Stepping through this neighborhood immerses travelers in fifteen centuries of unbroken hospitality, where geothermal energy has nurtured community and well-being through turbulent eras.

Walk a few dozen paces west along the riverbed toward the dazzling tiled facade of the Chreli Abano bathhouse.