Grakliani Museum

A previously unknown script was discovered just below a temple's collapsed altar to a fertility goddess from the seventh century BCE. These inscriptions differ from those at other temples at Grakliani, which show animals, people, or decorative elements.^[8] The script bears no resemblance to any alphabet currently known, although its letters are conjectured to be related to ancient Greek and Aramaic.^[8] The inscription appears to be the oldest native alphabet to be discovered in the whole Caucasus region,^[1] a thousand years older than any indigenous writing previously discovered in the region.^[8] In comparison, the earliest Armenian and Georgian scripts date from the fifth century AD, just after the respective cultures converted to Christianity. By September 2015, an area of 31 by 3 inches of the inscription had been excavated.^[8]

According to Vakhtang Licheli, head of the Institute of Archaeology of the State University, "The writings on the two altars of the temple are really well preserved. On the one altar several letters are carved in clay while the second altar’s pedestal is wholly covered with writings."^[2] The finding was made by unpaid students.^{[citation needed]} After the revelation stipends became available and the government doubled the site's research budget.^[8]