TBILISI, Georgia, April 6. First Lady of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva visited the Museum of Azerbaijani Culture named after Mirza Fatali Akhundzade in Tbilisi on April 6, TurkicWorld's special correspondent reports.
The First Lady was provided with detailed information about the museum.
The museum building was originally constructed with funds from Mirza Fatali Akhundzade, who once lived in Tbilisi. In 1982, at the request of Azerbaijani intellectuals in Georgia, an apartment-museum dedicated to Mirza Fatali Akhundzade was established in the building. Following the official visit of National Leader Heydar Aliyev to Georgia in 1996, the cultural center underwent major renovation and has operated as a cultural center ever since.
In 2007, by order of the President of Georgia, the center was granted the status of the Museum of Azerbaijani Culture. In 2013, with financial support from the Republic of Azerbaijan, major renovation and reconstruction works were carried out. The official opening of the museum on May 8 of that year was dedicated to the 90th anniversary of National Leader Heydar Aliyev.
Currently, the cultural center operating under the museum offers courses in carpet weaving, music (including mugham), painting, and language.
The main goal of the museum is to preserve and promote Azerbaijani culture and the cultural heritage of the Azerbaijani people in Georgia. Artifacts related to Azerbaijan’s cultural heritage from the collections of various museums in the country are studied and exhibited here.
The museum features six exhibition halls displaying national musical instruments, traditional costumes, samples of folk art, exhibits reflecting the life and activities of Mirza Fatali Akhundzade, and other items.
The exhibition also includes traditional carpets woven by ethnic Azerbaijanis living in Georgia and preserved in the National Museum. Their history dates back centuries. The collection and scientific study of these carpets began in the mid-19th century, during the period of the “Caucasus Museum,” the legal predecessor of the Georgian National Museum.
In the hall dedicated to Azerbaijani-Georgian friendship, there are works by sculptors from both countries reflecting the friendly relations between the two peoples, as well as photographs of the Heydar Aliyev Cultural and Recreation Park in Tbilisi, the Mirza Fatali Akhundzade School and Library, Tbilisi Avenue in Baku, and the “Friendship Monument.”
In addition to hosting cultural events and conferences, the museum is home to the “Council of the Wise,” which continues the tradition of the “Divani-Hikmet” literary assembly founded by Mirza Shafi Vazeh in Ganja in the 1820s–1830s. The museum also houses the only Azerbaijani-language library and art gallery in Tbilisi.
After the tour, the First Lady of Azerbaijan signed the museum’s guest book. Small carpets woven by children were presented as a gift to First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva.
