Uplistsikhe is located on the left bank of river Mtkvari, 10 km from the town of Gori. It can be detected on the southern slope of Kvernaki mountain range, on the area of 10 ha. Uplistsikhe is the only monument of Antique time in Georgia which nowadays remained above the surface of the ground. Town has streets, squares, water drainage ducts, various constructions, four gates, secret tunnel leading to river Mtkvari, a fence, et al. Today the fortified town is an outdoors museum.

In X-VI centuries BC Uplistsikhe was a fortress of a chieftain (ruler) of the predominant tribe in Shida Kartli. Exactly at that time it was called Uplistsikhe which means Fortified town of a ruler. As the legend goes, Uplistsikhe was built by slaves. Slaves were given a mattock with its blade covered by plain metal while underneath layer made of gold. A slave was supposed to work in a way which would grate plain metal. After that he was granted a gift of freedom and precious metal. Archeological material proves that a human settlement was here even back in XVI-XV cc. BC. In IV c. BC – III c. AD Uplistsikhe was a religious and administrative center. After adopting Christianity as a state religion in Georgia (20-ies of IV c. AD) urban life in Uplistsikhe went down but it still remained a strong fortified town. In X-XIII cc. Uplistsikhe is a buoyant fortified town and its population attains 20 000 residents. Resulting invasion of the Mongols, Uplistsikhe gradually drained of residents.

There are extant portions of halls in the rock of Antique times and Antique theatre of II c. in the remnants of the town. In the central part of the town, in the rock, is evident a big-size, three-nave Basilica (second half of VI c.). In the Northern part of a fortified town stands a three-church Basilica of a crown-prince (second half of X c.). Outside of the church there are barrels for donations. When a child was born in a family, wine was poured into a barrel and when a child turned 16, a barrel was brought to a church and left there. One of the entrances of Uplistsikhe was a secret tunnel. It was cut in the rock and is 41-meter long. During a siege the town was supplied with water and foodstuffs using this tunnel.