“The Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums” was founded on July 29, 2016. It unites 9 independent museums in a single institution. Most of the museums have operated for many years and protected Georgian cultural and historical heritage. The Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums unites memorial houses belonging to significant individuals who took a great part of the creation of Georgian culture. The period spreads from 19th until the 20th century. The only museum under The Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums without memorial status is Dolls Museum which presents puppets and dolls from different parts of Georgia as the exhibits from different parts of the world. The Mission of Tbilisi Municipal Museums is the new role of the museums in contemporary society, which can be described as a synergy of the traditional museum activity and an educational aspect, which focuses on knowledge sharing to each person. Modern museums must expand their vision and must prioritize the visitors together and collection. Museums must have a clear social function, and thus better, communicate with visitors. The Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums unites following museums:
Ilia Chavchavadze Tbilisi Literary-Memorial Museum
7 Ivane Javakhishvili Street, Tbilisi 0102
Galaktion Tabidze Memorial House-Museum
4 Kote Marjanishvili Street, Tbilisi 0105
Vakhtang Chabukiani Memorial House-Museum
83/23 Davit Aghmashenebeli Avenue, Tbilisi 0105
Zakaria Paliashvili Memorial House-Museum
10 Dimitri Bakraze Street, Tbilisi 0108
Merab Kostava Memorial House-Museum
1 Mikheil Zandukeli Street, Tbilisi 0108
Nikoloz Baratashvili Memorial House-Museum
17 Chakhrukhadze Street, Tbilisi 0160
Mikheil Javakhishvili Memorial House-Museum
21 Mikheil Javakhishvili Street, Tbilisi 0105
Kote & Soso Tseretelis House-Museum
2 Dimitri Uznadze Street, Tbilisi 0190
The Dolls Museum
The goals of the Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums are:
Immortalize the names of Ilia Chavchavadze, Zakaria Paliashvili, Nikoloz Baratashvili, Mikheil Javakhishvili, Galaktion Tabidze, Vakhtang Chabukiani and Kote and Soso Tsereteli;
Collect, record, protect, examine scientifically materials about life and work of Ilia Chavchavadze, Zakaria Paliashvili, Nikoloz Baratashvili, Mikheil Javakhishvili, Galaktion Tabidze, Vakhtang Chabukiani and Kote and Soso Tsereteli; ensure their exposure; carry out educational work;
Promote dolls art: in Georgia and abroad collect and protect widespread, highly valued dolls, mechanical toys, folk art samples, new models, and publish the results of the study;
At all structural units of the Union of Museums, registered memorial objects and valuable exhibits will be a base to form the core fund, which is part of the country museum foundation.
Conduct permanent enriching various fund; receive collections and things from state institutions, public organizations, as well as from individuals as a donation or purchase them.
Carry out scientific work on materials housed at the Museums and on this basis prepare to publish scientific articles, reports, catalogues, exhibition guides and brochures;
Arrange permanent expositions and moving exhibitions inside and outside the country; ensure their re-exhibition periodically. In accordance to the goals of the Union of Museums for 2017, the Union will complete institutional forming; design new display concepts and prepare new expositions; work out unified display strategy, prepare information base and scientific ways etc.
Renovated Memorial House of Vakhtang Chabukiani was opened on February 27 2017 which was symbolically dedicated to his 107th birthday.
Rehabilitation of the exhibition space of Vakhtang Chabukiani Museum is the first infrastructural project of the Union of Museums, which envisaged partial rehabilitation of Vakhtang Chabukiani Memorial House-Museum – in particular, rehabilitation-re-exposure of only one exhibition hall.


United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has included the 200th anniversary of Nikoloz Baratashvili in its list of cultural events of international importance in 2017.
In 2017, the Tbilisi Museums Association held a grand opening ceremony of the Nikoloz Baratashvili Memorial House-Museum on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Nikoloz Baratashvili.
For the first time in the exhibition space, the relevant creative industry of modern museography and 3D animation are used. The aim of the re-exposition project is to introduce and popularize the name and work of Nikoloz Baratashvili to the general publish through various industrial means of culture – animation methods – in accordance with modern museography and to make it attractive to the viewer.


On May 18 2019, as part of the week dedicated to the International Museum Day, the Kote and Soso Tsereteli Memorial House-Museum was opened with a renewed exposition.
The exhibition concept of the museum is an attempt to restore the era of the eighties, to show the contradictory socio-moral picture that preceded the collapse of the Soviet Empire in Georgia.


Galaktion Tabidze Memorial House-Museum of the Tbilisi Museums association was renovated and opened on July 22 2020.
During the rehabilitation-repair works of the Museum-Memorial space, the House-Museum memorial features of the House-Museum as well as the museum needs were fully protected.
The exhibition spaces in the museum are prepared in accordance with modern museography and the installations follow the life of Galaktion Tabidze and the chronological plans of the biography.


Rehabilitated Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum
Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum of the Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums went through the rehabilitation works in 2017-2018, while in 2019-2020 the Museum spaces, memorial rooms, exhibits, and different belongings characterizing the epoch went through the restoration and preservation process.
On 24 September 2021, the Museum was open for public.
Rehabilitation works were carried out within the framework of the sub-program of the museum development project “New Tbilisi” of the Tbilisi Development Fund of the Tbilisi City Hall.
Following works have been implemented in the historic building:
structural enhancement of the building;
rehabilitation facade decorations;
dismantle of the old roof and instalment of a new one;
enhancement of the inter-story roofing;
preparation of the internal spaces for restoration.
Rehabilitation works covered enhancement of electricity lines, instalments of heating, cooling and fire protection systems, different electric devices and lifts.
Aiming to enrich the funds of the Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum, iconographic and documental materials as well as rarities have been purchased from the National Archives of Georgia.
Memorial room of Ilia Chavchavadze has been fully renewed and the authentic ceiling and floor have been restored. Arranging memorial spaces involved providing of an epoch-making context in the memorial halls of museum spaces and for this purpose, memorial and epoch-making items with information received through various epistolary heritages.There are various materials related to Ilia Chavchavadze’s life and work preserved at the Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum, which include memorial items, personal archives, various editions of their works, as well as scientific papers, essays, monographs, photographic materials, pieces of fine art, etc.
In 1888-1901, Ilia Chavchavadze lived with his wife, Olgha Guramishvili in #7 Javakhishvili street in Tbilisi – a house of his sister, Elisabed Chavchavadze-Saghinashvili. This house is associated with Ilia’s active socio-political and creative life. At the same time, the house hosted the editorial office and printing house of the newspaper “Iveria” and Ilia’s traditional “Thursdays”. Number of national, state and cultural initiatives were generated here.
The mission of the Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums is to establish a new role of museums in the modern society, which can be described as the unity of the preservation of the traditional museum activities and the educational aspect, in which the focus is on sharing knowledge for each individuals. Modern museums need to broaden their horizons and make along with the collection, make the visitors a priority.

