Experts believe the building - near
the city of Chiatura in the former Soviet republic of Georgia - was
constructed on the mountain between the sixth and eight centuries.
(dailymail.co.uk) This is the church where religious leaders really are preaching from on high - perched 130ft on top of a pillar of rock.
The tiny church sits precariously on a jagged cliff which has been eroded by weather over almost 14 centuries.
It
is believed that pagans built the temple in the bizarre location as the
pillar was thought to symbolise their god of fertility.
Konstantin Murtkhveladze, 25, braved the perilous ascent up the pillar using a rusty ladder to take some pictures.
'The old ladder on the side of the pillar looks like it could snap at any time', he told the Daily Mirror.
Konstantin,
from Tbilisi in Georgia, added: 'But once you get up there it sends a
chill down your spine. It feels like a very special place.
'You can see the church poking above the landscape from far away as you approach. It’s an unbelievable sight.'
It is not known how the pagans who
built the temple carried the materials up the steep pillar without large
cranes that are used today.
The church is currently being restored with the help of brave volunteers who carry vital materials up the steep ladder.
Father Maxim, 55, who has lived in the church for 18 years, says he dreamed of living there as a child.
'Since I was a child I dreamed of settling on the top of this pillar as other hermits did in ancient times,' he said.
'When I came here with my friends I envied the monk who had lived there long ago – now I am here too I am happy.'
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