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Georgian author tells of some anti-Il-khans getting shelter in the West Geor-
gia,   the case with David Narin himself receiving the fugitive Tegüder: “...and
met him with pleasure, and laid a table for five hundred stewed beef, and
pork and mutton; six hundred horses, fifteen hundred caws, thousand
sheep, two thousand pigs – all for his host, and served Tegüder as inferior’
[27,261]. Contacts between the West Georgia and Egypt were by no means
lessened afterwards, as it is well proved by the fact of Konstantine’s (son to
David) envoys’ visit to Egypt in 1310-11.  
In the 1260s David Narin also establishes close contacts with Byzan-
tium and marries the daughter of John, the Emperor Mikhail II Paleologos’s
brother [22, 204]. This was part of the treaty set between David Narin and
the Byzantium. According to this Treaty, the privileges assigned to the Geor-
gians before Crusaders’ conquer of Constantinople were restored. Thanks
to the Arab historians, it’s getting clear that Byzantium, confronting the
Rome, held close relationship with the kings of West Georgia, as it is proved
by the fact of the joint trip of their envoys to the sultan of Egypt in 1305-
1310. Arab historians, though, make a mistake stating that the Lascar Dy-
nasty hold power in Constantinople of that age – as since 1260s, Byzantium
had been ruled by the Paleologos family. 
While East Georgian kingdom and Samtskhe princedom kept alliances
with the Il-khans, Cilician  Armenia, Rum Sultanate, and the Pope of Rome,
the West Georgian kingdom, naturally, allies with the Golden Horde, Egypt,
and Byzantium – those that confront the Il-khans and the  Pope of Rome. 
It’s clear that both Eastern and Western Georgian kingdoms strongly
depend on outer circumstances and their steps are cautiously measured
according to then present political conjuncture. 
Thus, we may sum up that in the years of 1310-11, as well as in 1305-
6, envoys were sent to Egypt not by the king of eastern, but of western Geor-
gia – i.e. Konstantine, though in none of the known documents the name of
the king is ever mentioned.  
Alongside with his rule time dating (1299-1311), presumption that
the king of East Georgia, David VIII participated in getting back the
monastery of the Holy Cross, is based on the records in one of the dead-
scrolls of the Holy Cross monastery in Jerusalem: 295 (m-288), table XXXII
says that ‘In eternal memoriam of David the King of Kings, reconstructor of
the Monastery that had been turned into mosque and now again in Geor-
gian possession...’  [6, 106].  E. Metreveli comments that nobody else but
David VIII should have been presumed here [6, 176], but haw much trust-
worthy is the assumption? David the King of Kings is also mentioned in an-
other dead-scroll : (m-193 XXVII), 196 (m-XXCIII) and there we reed:
‘blessed he be, for a lot of gold had been bestowed to the Monastery, thus
liberating it from great debt...’ [6, 97]. According to the comments, David IX
(1346-1360) is named here, as well as in 7 (m-6) table XXVII; 195 (m-193)
table XXVII [6, 117, 162], and no other dead-scroll naming any David from
East Georgia. Uniting all in the table XXXII, ‘that does not surpass the
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chronological margin of the yearly XIV c.’, can not be considered as a solid
proof, as it already has been pointed by B. Silagadze [12, 97]. As for liber-
ating the Monastery in 1305/6, it can’t be true, so far as the talks for its lib-
eration were carried even through the years 1310/11 (see D. Gocholeishvili
and G. Japharidze).
Apart from the abovementioned authors, some other historians also
provide information on Egypt-Georgia relationships: Al-‘Umari (1301-
1349), and Al-Qalqashandi (1355-1418). They say that the talks on liberat-
ing the Monastery were held by Brtilma, the King of Georgia, identified by
the most of scholars as Giorgi the Brilliant; but taking into consideration
the discrepancy between the names Brtilma-Giorgi, some scholars have  dif-
ferent points of view [4,77,80; 13,42-43]. According to David Lang, Al-
‘Umari mixed up the King with his vassal -  it has to be the Prince of Siuniq,
son to Eliqum Orbeliani – Burtel (Birtvel) Orbeliani [4, 77, note 4; 5, 262,
note 2].
Al-‘Umari says that ‘... he started negotiations with the Sublime Porte
of Sultan about the Monastery, and quite succeeded, as Sultan issued decree
on giving it back to the Georgians. It’s located outside Jerusalem and in ear-
lier time, had been turned into mosque’ [13, 52].
Besides, King Giorgi’s activities concerning the Holy Land are well re-
ported in some Georgian documents. The Book of Eristavs (15
th
c.) tells as
follows: ‘The news spread that Persians conquered Jerusalem, and the King
was in woe. Then sent He Pipai. the son of Shalva Eristavi to Jerusalem, all
upon dry land, with lots of gifts to deliver and was he well greeted, the gifts
accepted, and the locks of Jerusalem opened to him; thus came he back to
King Giorgi with good news, and the King rejoiced, as the locks were in hand
of Georgians again’ [29, 350). 
Iv. Javakhishvili presumed that one of the pleas to Sultan of Egypt
would have been the liberation of the Holy Cross Monastery and returning
it to the Georgians [24,175]; then he aligned Arabic sources on Georgian-
Byzantium joint mission to Egypt, carried overseas, with the name of Giorgi
the Brilliant [24,175], discharging the underlined note of Pipai’s travel “all
upon dry land”. 
A. Menteshashvili accepts the opinion on redeeming the monastery by
Giorgi the Brilliant. Relying on al-‘Ayni saying that Georgians got to Egypt to-
gether with Golden Horde and Byzantine envoys in 1320, he sums up that
this was the very mission aimed at redeeming the Holy Cross Monastery.
Thus – he says – this very year should be considered as the date of liberating
it’ [30, 19).  A. Menteshashvili also reveals another document about Geor-
gians visit to Cairo in 716/1316-17. According to the script, eight ambassa-
dors came to Cairo that year, one being that of Georgian King’s [30, 19). 
However, Iv. Javakhishvili’s and A. Menteshashvili’s opinion on dating
the redeeming of the Monastery was not accepted by other scholars but V.
Kiknadze (21, 62). It’s noteworthy that most of them also assigned Georgian
missions to Egypt in 1316-17 and in 1320 to Giorgi the Brilliant, among
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