ILIA CHAVCHAVADZE LITERARY-MEMORIAL MUSEUM

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. Number of national, state and cultural initiatives were generated here.

In 1889-1901, the museum building hosted various institutions, including the editorial office of the main media of the country – newspaper Iveria, the printing house of Maxime Sharadze and Company, Medical Cabinet of famous doctor Mikheil Gedevanishvili with first X-ray and electrotherapy services in the Caucasus, medical facility, where team of professional doctors, including the first Georgian professional female doctor, pediatrician Mariam Bakradze provided medical services to the population (free of charge for the poor) and the Society for Spreading Literacy among Georgians. Period, when Ilia Chavchavadze lived in that house coincides with a very important undertaking, which today is known as social responsibility and patronage. Different rooms of the home at different times hosted the people who actively worked issues related to women’s education, women’s rights, women’s higher education and access to education. The house hosted Ilia’s traditional “Thursdays”.

Ilia Chavachavadze’s personality and public activities determines significance of the Museum. Chavchavadze’s devotion to develop Georgian public, political or economic life in the 19th century was of immeasurable importance. Beginning of the 19th century for Georgia was a period of Russia’s expansion with loss of statehood, abolition of church autocephaly, neglection of national values and a deep socio-economic crisis. Ilia Chavchavadze was a public and political figure, writer, playwright, publicist, journalist, editor, publisher, Georgian literary language reformer, founder of Georgian Literary Criticism, lawyer, conciliatory judge, financier, Head of Tbilisi Nobiliary Land Bank, Chairman of the Society for Spreading Literacy among Georgians, Chairman of Georgian Drama Society, Vice-President of Caucasus Imperial Economic Society, State Council Member and Leader of National Liberation Movement.

Four-year rehabilitation-conservation and adaptation works at Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum allowed to preserve one of the most important buildings of Georgian historical heritage with outstanding historical and architectural value.

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.

Implemented rehabilitation works, first of all, eliminated the difficult physical condition of the building of historical significance.

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.

Exhibition and memorial spaces, museum stock materials and epoch-making items were renovated taking into account the epochal relevance and the description conveyed by the epistolary heritage. As a result, the Museum has a space for storing funds and collections equipped with modern standards and protected systems, as well as a conservation restoration laboratory, which provides conservation of not only exhibits, collections and funds of Ilia Chavachavadze Memorial Museum, but all the museums of the Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums.

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.

Rehabilitated museum offers visitors renovated exhibition and memorial spaces, museum fund materials and historical items arranged in epochal relevance, all features necessary for a modern museum including interaction facilities, audio-visual material, recreation area, green cover, or orchard in the yard. The Museum aims to follow the inspiration of Ilia Chavchavadze and serve as a venue for various social and cultural events dedicated to the development of society.

Tbilisi Ilia Chavchavadze Literary-Memorial Museum is an important structural unit of the Union of Tbilisi Municipal Museums. 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 individual. Modern museums need to broaden their horizons and make along with the collection, make the visitors a priority.

Following the mission of the Union, after conservation and adaptation, the Museum was transformed into a space where traditional museum activities incorporate educational aspects. It is important that exhibition halls dedicated to Ilia Chavchavadze’s work and memorial spaces dating back to the second half of the 19th century not only tell about the various activities of Ilia Chavchavadze, but also illustrate cultural and social transformation of the epoch.

One of the main tasks of the rehabilitation project was to provide the conservation and adaptation of a historic building with a status of a cultural heritage site in line with modern conservation practices.

Rehabilitation-adaptation works provided equal access to house authenticity and returned historical context for people with all types of needs and interests. The museum is fully adapted for people with disabilities, for visitors and users with different needs.

The space is perfectly modernized, adapted to modern museum standards, with minimal interference with the authentic appearance of the building. Also, authentic spaces left in the interior of the building, authentic elements left in the memorial rooms were thoroughly studied, revealed and preserved. These authentic elements are exhibited in accordance with the museography standards.

Renovated Museum is especially important in the context of modern Georgia’s European aspirations since it clearly illustrates that before Sovietization, Georgia was an integral part of European culture, and today’s aspirations to the European Union roots back to this house.