Sno Village ‘Giant Stone Heads’, Georgia’s Coolest Public Art Project

In the tiny village of Sno, one artist’s dream to eternalise Georgia’s great poets, writers and kings has re-shaped the landscape.

The sculptor behind the so-called ‘Gigantic Heads’, Merab Piranishvili, wants to create an open-air museum to teach visitors about the nation’s literary, artistic and cultural heavyweights.

I first heard about Sno and the sculptures when researching places to stop along the Georgian Military Highway between Tbilisi and Kazbegi. It took me several visits before I finally made a detour to see the Giant Stone Heads in person.

Some draw comparisons between Sno and Easter Island or even Mount Rushmore. In reality, this is quite a small-scale project (at least for now), but it’s still very impressive.

Set in one of Georgia’s most pristine landscapes, the Giant Head Sculptures are a quirky attraction with a heartwarming backstory. If you’re in the area, Sno is a worthwhile detour on the way up to Kazbegi and Gergeti Trinity.

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The story of Sno’s Giant Head Sculptures

Sno is a small village of around 150 people. It’s known within Georgia for two reasons: Firstly for its bottled water, Sno Aqua, and secondly for being the birthplace of the sitting Patriarch of Georgian Orthodox Church.

Sno’s third and altogether more obscure claim to fame is difficult to miss. As you approach the village from the highway, a rolling hill comes into view dotted with 10 monolithic granite faces staring down at you from behind tall grass.

The sculptures are the work of one man, Merab Piranishvili. Piranishvili was born in Sno and graduated from the Tbilisi Art Academy in 1977 before working as an art teacher in the capital. He returned to his home village in the 1980s to embark on his passion project and completed the first sculpture, a portrait of St. George, in 1984.

There are now half a dozen stone heads in the collection, each depicting a different figure from Georgian history or the arts. You might recognise a few of them – and if not, you’ll certainly recognise the names: Shota Rustaveli, Ilia Chavchavadze, Akaki Tsereteli, Vazha Pshavela, Alexandre Kazbegi.

I did a double take when I saw Piranishvili’s latest work. An aberration, it doesn’t portray a Georgian but… Jesus. I missed out on seeing the first and largest sculpture, the one of St. George on his horse – it’s tucked further away in the hills behind Sno.

The six main stone heads face towards the road, casting stony expressions at passers by. Each one is titled skywards as if to drink in the dramatic mountain views. In summer, nature gives the men beards of wildflowers and weeds.

Each face is carved from a single granite or quartz block, all a slightly different shade and texture. The stone is sourced locally and perfectly harmonises with the landscape. Some of the faces mirror the rust-and-amber tints of the nearby travertine mineral springs, others are steely grey with veins of pearl and obsidian.

Piranishvili carves them all by hand. The process used to take him a full summer, but with the help of a motorised tool he can now polish one off within a week. During Soviet times, the state funded his work. Now the artist must cover the cost of moving the slabs to Sno.

This has hindered Piranishvili’s progress. His goal is to carve 500 heads in total for his open-air museum to draw more tourists to Sno. Georgian kings Tamar Mepe and David Agmashenebeli are next on the agenda.

By the time you visit Georgia, there might well be a few more giant stone heads to admire.

How to visit the Giant Head Sculptures in Sno

Sno village is located in the Greater Caucasus, 150km north of Tbilisi just before Kazbegi/Stepantsminda. If you’re heading up to visit Gergeti Trinity Church as part of your itinerary, you can easily make a quick detour to visit Sno as you drive the Georgian Military Road.

To find the sculptures, take the turn off before Kazbegi towards the village of Achkhoti. The heads are located 3km from the main highway. The location is marked ‘Gigantic Sculptures’ on Google Maps (see the exact coordinates here on Google Maps).

Because it involves a detour, it’s not possible to stop in Sno if you’re in a marshrutka or a shared taxi. I highly recommend organising a private transfer through GoTrip.ge from Tbilisi to Kazbegi so you can stop off in Sno (and anywhere else you want, including at the Georgia-Russia Friendship Monument) along the way.

Prices start from a very reasonable 65 USD one-way. Book here.

Since I first published this article, the stone heads have become quite an attraction! Merab kindly asks for a 5 GEL donation to put towards his future projects. You can leave your money in the marked post box.

Note that there is a marked shrine nearby the Stone Heads, cordoned off with a wire fence. Do not approach it, and do not photograph it.

After walking amongst the statues, cross the small river to visit Sno Castle, a 16th-century fortification that sits on a little rocky outcrop. The Patriarch’s residence and church is located just before the bridge and can be viewed from outside the gates.

Piranishvili’s sculpture of St. George can be found behind the village here and requires a short uphill hike.

From Sno, you can head back to the highway and continue to Kazbegi (a 10-minute drive) or continue further into Sno village. If you keep following the road east into the mountains you’ll come to a second village called Karkucha before eventually arriving in the picturesque Sno Valley and Juta village, home of the wonderful Fifth Season Cabin. There are plenty more accommodation options nearby in Kazbegi.

If you missed your Khinkali lunch stop in Pasanauri and you’re looking for a place to eat nearby, Tsanareti restaurant in Arsha comes highly recommended.

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You might also be interested in…

• Visiting a clay Qvevri workshop in Shrosha, Georgia
• Visiting a master potter in Zugdidi, Samegrelo
• Visiting the Didgori Battle Memorial, Georgia’s most impressive war monument
• Made in Georgia: Independent Georgian designers & makers to follow
• On the road with Karavanly, artisan-focused tours of Georgia

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