A historical narrative
David of Tao's world, imperial crisis, Tornike's intervention and the historical setting of Iviron.
Revised English edition · 2026The history behind the legend
The Mystery of
Prester John
David of Tao and the Two Johns:
The Georgian Hypothesis
Where did the story of the priest-king who captivated the medieval imagination begin?
This investigation turns to the tenth century: David III of Tao, John-Tornike and John the Iberian, before following the question into the world of medieval legend.
118pages18chapters19illustrationsPDFformat
English edition · PDF
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The central question
Three historical figures.
A lasting memory.
By the time Otto of Freising writes about Prester John, the story is already legendary. What might lie behind that account?
Giorgi Kavtaradze develops a Georgian hypothesis centred on the shared historical world of David of Tao, John-Tornike and John the Iberian. The narrative moves between Georgia, Byzantium and Mount Athos, then turns to the western accounts of a distant priest-king.
This revised edition begins with documentary attestations of Johns called presbyter. It compares the shared historical world of David of Tao, John Tornike and John the Iberian with Otto of Freising’s account, examining Skleros’s eastern connections and alternative explanations. Documented names and events are distinguished from the still unproven transmission of their memory into the legend.
Inside the edition
A world recovered through its sources.
An illustrated edition
Surviving images appear alongside explicitly labelled reconstructions, maps and architectural settings.
A dialogue with evidence
110 notes, 50 bibliography entries, the author’s photograph of the Zarzma inscription with transcription and analysis, and a facsimile of the 1047 colophon.