• In:
  • Georgian National Museum

HYPOGEA 2026

  • Event Date

    2026-09-22 - 2026-09-26

  • Event Time

    08:00 AM-05:00 PM

08:30 - 10:00 Georgian National Museum

Registration

10:00 - 12:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Opening Ceremony

12:00 - 12:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Architecture of the Void: The Settlement Complex of the Hypogea in the Pontrelli Locality

Chiaramaria Spinelli · PAPER 1 · UNDERGROUND AND ROCKY CIVIL SETTLEMENT WORKS

12:20 - 12:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Rock-Cut Village of Nicosia

Roberta Varriale · PAPER 2 · UNDERGROUND AND ROCKY CIVIL SETTLEMENT WORKS

12:40 - 13:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Historical Anthropic Hypogean Caves of the Volcanic Area of Goris (Syunik Marz, Armenia)

Rosario Ruggieri, Samvel M. Shahinyan · PAPER 3 · UNDERGROUND AND ROCKY CIVIL SETTLEMENT WORKS

13:00 - 13:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

A Comparative Study of Plant-Derived Food Preparation and the Food Storage in Ancient Armenian Subterranean Settlements

Bella G. Babayan, Samvel M. Shahinyan, Samvel A. Bagdasaryan, Tigran A. Yesayan, Garegin G. Sevoyan, Alexander H. Yesayan · PAPER 4 · UNDERGROUND AND ROCKY CIVIL SETTLEMENT WORKS

13:20 - 13:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Vulnerability and Heritage Issues of Loess Dwellings in North China

Constantin Canavas · PAPER 5 · UNDERGROUND AND ROCKY CIVIL SETTLEMENT WORKS

13:40 - 14:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Two Important Rock-Cut Monuments in Historical Tao-Klarjeti

Giorgi Bagrationi · PAPER 6 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

14:00 - 15:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Lunch

15:00 - 15:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Architectural Structure of the Medieval Cave Monasteries of David Gareji within the Framework of Byzantine and Eastern Christian Monasticism

Nodar Bakhtadze, Bachana Gabekhadze · PAPER 7 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

15:20 - 15:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

New Materials for the Study of the Gareji Monasteries

Ketevan Digmelashvili, Nikoloz Zhgenti · PAPER 8 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

15:40 - 16:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Utilities for Rainwater Harvesting in the Laura of St. David, and Rock-Cut Furnishings in the Udabno Monastery of Davitgareji Wilderness, Georgia

Lado Mirianashvili · PAPER 9 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

16:00 - 16:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Burials and their Paintings in the Gareja Monastic Association: The Tomb of Saint Dodo Garejeli

Zaza Skhirtladze · PAPER 10 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

16:30 - 17:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Coffee Break

17:00 - 17:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Interpretation of Ornamental Motifs on the Stone Cross Pillar of John the Baptist from David Gareji (6th-7th Centuries)

Nino Goderdzishvili · PAPER 11 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

17:20 - 17:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Caves in the Armenian Belief System: The Case of St. Gregory the Illuminator's Cave in Sarnaghbyur

Hasmik Galstyan, Roman Hovsepyan · PAPER 12 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

17:40 - 18:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Caves of Geghard Gorge: from a Pagan Sanctuary to a Monastic Complex

Smbat Davtyan, Tigran Armenyan, Tigran Simonyan, Ruzanna Safaryan · PAPER 13 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

18:00 - 18:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Once More on the Function of Uplistsikhe Iwan Complexes

Kakha Khimshiashvili · PAPER 14 · RELIGIOUS AND CULT WORKS

09:00 - 10:00 Georgian National Museum

Registration

10:00 - 10:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Architectural Characteristics and Spatial Organisation of the Medieval Rock-Cut Cave Monastery of Krepcha (Bulgaria)

Miroslav Georgiev · PAPER 1

10:20 - 10:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Rock Cut Monastery from the 10th Century in “Voden-Iri Hisar” State Hunting Area, Razgrad District, NE Bulgaria

Alexey Zhalov · PAPER 2

10:40 - 11:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Sant'Angelo in Criptis Cave (Santeramo in Colle, Bari, Italy): Cult and Nature. Knowledge, Conservation Protocol and Heritage Value

Mariagrazia Cinelli, Valentina Gaudio, Antonio Laselva, Lorenzo Orsini, Marcello Turci · PAPER 3

11:00 - 11:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Coffee Break

11:30 - 11:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Artificial Cavities Within the Kura River: From Turkey to Georgia

Ali Yamaç · PAPER 4

11:50 - 12:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Cave Complex of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Ust-Medveditsky Monastery

Alexey Gunko, Sofia Kondrateva, Vitaly Stepkin, Alexander Gunko · PAPER 5

12:10 - 12:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Newly Discovered Medieval Rock-Cut Complex of Ohanavan

Dianna Mirijanyan, Arman Nalbandyan, Mher Khechoyan · PAPER 6 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

12:30 - 12:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Rock-Cut Funerary Complexes of Armenia: Problems of Definition, Chronology and Function

Ani Adigyozalyan, Artur Petrosyan, Hayk Haydosyan, Soseh Aghaian, Boris Gasparyan, Dmitri Arakelyan, Roberto Dan · PAPER 7 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

12:50 - 13:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Unusual Tiny Grave in the Church Göreme 31 (Cappadocia)

Danil Shevchenko, Alexey Ostrovsky, Vladimir Shkondin · PAPER 8 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:10 - 13:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

From Funerary Monument to Industrial Space: The “Lions’ Tomb” at Horvat Burgin

Boaz Zissu · PAPER 9 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:30 - 13:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Subterranean Hiding Complexes as a Jewish Defensive Strategy During the Three Revolts Against Rome in the Galilee

Yinon Shivtiel, Uri Berger · PAPER 10 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:50 - 14:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Cremation Urn Discovered in the Samshvilde Cave No.2 and its Similarities in Anatolia

Mikheil Shalvashvili · PAPER 11 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

14:10 - 14:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Details of the Natlismtsemeli Monastery in Gareji Based on the Study of a Single Burial

Eliso Kvavadze, Liana Bitadze, Ketevan Digmelashvili · PAPER 12 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

14:30 - 15:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Lunch

15:30 - 15:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Filling the Gaps on the Cliff: Constructive Strategies in the Vertical Chachapoya Necropolises of Diablo Wasi and La Petaca (Amazonas, Peru)

J. M. Toyne, Esteve Ribera-Torró, Armando Anzellini, Miquel Pans, Josep A. Ribera-Torró · PAPER 13 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

15:50 - 16:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Between Archaeology and Speleology: Exploration and Survey of a Medieval Well-Cistern in Peschiera del Garda (Verona, Italy)

Davide Ricci, Giovanna Falezza, Simone Liguori, Davide Brombo · PAPER 14 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

16:10 - 16:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Cave Monasticism in Southern Georgia: Archaeological Insights from Kazreti Ortvala Cave

David Berikashvili · PAPER 15 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

16:30 - 16:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Rock Structures of Chivchavi: Based on Archaeological Survey Data (Kvemo Kartli, Georgia)

Shota Tvaladze, Levan Kvakhadze · PAPER 16 · ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

16:50 - 17:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Twenty Years Without Vittorio Castellani (1937-2006), one of the Fathers of Speleology in Artificial Cavities in Italy and the World (poster presentation)

Carla Galeazzi, Roberto Bixio, Vittoria Caloi, Carlo Germani, Mario Parise · PAPER 17 · IN MEMORIAM

17:00 - 17:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Coffee Break

17:30 - 17:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Bridging Different Technologies to Survey a Culverted Stream in a Historical Centre of Great Cultural Value (Genoa World Heritage Site, Italy)

Francesco Faccini, Andrea Ferrando, Andrea Rimassa, Stefano Saj, Martino Terrone, Stefania Traverso · PAPER 18 · ANCIENT HYDRAULIC WORKS

17:50 - 18:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Discovery and Documentation of the Water Supply System of Ayvat

Ali Hakan Eğilmez, Ümit Günhan, Özlem Kaya, Kardelen Gülbenay Nurdoğan, Zeynep Kelpetin, Barkın İren · PAPER 19 · ANCIENT HYDRAULIC WORKS

18:10 - 18:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Hydraulic Systems of the Hrazdan River Gorge

Ani Saratikyan, Roberto Dan, Artur Petrosyan, Avetis Grigoryan, Boris Gasparyan · PAPER 20 · ANCIENT HYDRAULIC WORKS

18:30 - 18:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Water Cisterns of Some Monastic Communities in Mount Athos, Halkidiki, Greece

Alexey Zhalov, Konstantin Stoichkov · PAPER 21 · ANCIENT HYDRAULIC WORKS

09:00 - 18:30 Uplistsikhe, Shida Kartli Region

Excursion to Uplistsikhe — full-day field trip

09:00 - 10:00 Georgian National Museum

Registration

10:00 - 10:20 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The “Sulphur” Museum of Perticara (Italy): A Paradigm Shift from Passive Industrial Repository to Active Interdisciplinary Research Hub

Matteo Giordani, Eleonora Benà, Cesare Bianchi, Maria Cristina Agostini, Fabio Peruzzi ·

10:20 - 10:40 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

History of Underground Quarries at Cutrofiano (Apulia, Southern Italy) and Related Hazards

Francesca Lagna, Francesco Ligori, Isabella Serena Liso, Mario Parise · PAPER 2 · MINING/EXTRACTION WORKS

10:40 - 11:00 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Revisiting the Dating of the Huk Mine — a Previously Unknown Mine in Odesa City

Igor Grek, Nataliia Moldavska · PAPER 3 · MINING/EXTRACTION WORKS

11:00 - 11:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Coffee Break

11:30 - 11:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Rock-Hewn Hypogea with Vertical Bell-Shaped Excavations and Constructed Vaults, in the Area of the Eighteenth-Century Quarries of Matera (Southern Italy)

Giacomo Martines · PAPER 4 · MINING/EXTRACTION WORKS

11:50 - 12:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Survey and Mineralogical Study of the Mine Gallery from Grădina Zmeilor (Sălaj County, Romania)

Codruța Valea, Tudor Tămaș, Mădălin Erhan · PAPER 5 · MINING/EXTRACTION WORKS

12:10 - 12:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Underground Çakmak Defence Line from Çatalca, Istanbul

Ali Hakan Eğilmez, İlker Gürbüz, Gülşen Küçükali, Şengül Aydıngün, Emre Kuruçayırlı, Mark Metin Albukrek, Özlem Kaya · PAPER 6 · MILITARY AND DEFENSIVE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

12:30 - 12:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Underground Military Objects in Serbia

Nemanja Milosavljević · PAPER 7 · MILITARY AND DEFENSIVE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

12:50 - 13:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Integrated Multi-Sensor Geomatic Approaches for the Documentation and Monitoring of Georgian Rock-Cut Heritage

Luisa Beltramone, Mikheil Lobjanidze, Mikheil Elashvili, Riccardo Salvini · PAPER 8 · NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANALYZING AND DOCUMENTING THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:10 - 13:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Geomechanical Analysis and Stability Assessment of Phrygian Temples and Troglodyte Spaces, Anatolia, Turkey

Luis Jorda Bordehore, Ercan Emir, Abdelmadjid Benrabah, Melih Iphar · PAPER 9 · NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANALYZING AND DOCUMENTING THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:30 - 13:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Some Examples of Experimental Diagnostics and Conservation Assessments for Planning the Maintenance and Promotion of Rock Art in the Hypogeal Churches of the Apulia Murgia (Southern Italy)

Giacomo Martines, Vito Basile, Loreta Calia, Mariagrazia Cinelli, Filippo Lomurno, Domenico Lorusso, Remo Pavone, Chiaramaria Spinelli · PAPER 10 · NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANALYZING AND DOCUMENTING THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

13:50 - 14:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Knowledge as the Foundation of the Restoration Project: The San Marco Ravine in Massafra (Southern Italy)

Valentina Santoro, Giuseppe Martino · PAPER 11 · NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANALYZING AND DOCUMENTING THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

14:10 - 14:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Losing the Past: Maps and Inventories of Cappadocia (Turkey)

Ali Yamaç · PAPER 12 · NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR ANALYZING AND DOCUMENTING THE ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES

14:30 - 15:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Lunch

15:30 - 15:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

History, Architecture and Socio-Economical Features of Artificial Cavities in the Southern Apennines Hydrographic District (Italy)

Maria Assunta Fabozzi, Francesca Lagna, Isabella Serena Liso, Sandro Muscillo, Mario Parise, Piernicola Lollino, Luca Comegna, Emilia Damiano, Maria Petriccione, Giuseppina Mello, Gennaro Capasso, Vera Corbelli, Daniela Ruberti · PAPER 13 · CATEGORIES AND TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES: UPDATES

15:50 - 16:10 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Cavities in the Late Oligocene — Miocene Deposits of NW Romania. First Update

Tudor Tămaș, Codruța Valea, Mădălin Erhan, Eusebiu Szekely · PAPER 14 · CATEGORIES AND TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES: UPDATES

16:10 - 16:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Susceptibility to Sinkholes Caused by Artificial Cavities in Continental Southern Italy

Isabella Serena Liso, Francesca Lagna, Sandro Muscillo, Cosimo Cagnazzo, Piernicola Lollino, Maria Assunta Fabozzi, Luca Comegna, Emilia Damiano, Maria Petriccione, Gennaro Capasso, Vera Corbelli, Daniela Ruberti, Mario Parise · PAPER 15 · CATEGORIES AND TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES: UPDATES

16:30 - 16:50 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

The Sculpture Cave of Dénezé sous-Doué (Maine-et-Loire / France): First Analysis of Sculptures Detached from the Walls

Luc Stevens · PAPER 16 · CATEGORIES AND TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL CAVITIES: UPDATES

17:00 - 17:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Coffee Break

17:30 - 18:30 Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Closing Ceremony

09:00 - 15:00 David Gareja, Kakheti Region

Excursion to the David Gareja Wilderness

Day excursion. Sturdy closed shoes, hat, sunscreen and water bottle are mandatory.

19:00 - 23:00 Tbilisi

Congress Dinner

Closing dinner of the congress.

  • Date : September 22, 2026 - September 26, 2026
  • Time : 08:00 - 17:00 (Asia/Tbilisi)
  • Venue : Georgian National Museum

Related Events

Georgian National Museum

Day 01 — Afternoon Scientific Session

Georgian National Museum

Lunch Break

Georgian National Museum

Day 01 — Evening Scientific Session

Georgian National Museum

Day 01 — Morning Scientific Session

4th day program
Georgian National Museum Auditorium

Final Plenary Session