First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva visits Museum of Azerbaijani Culture named after Mirza Fatali Akhundzade in Tbilisi [PHOTOS]

First Lady of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva visited the Museum of
Azerbaijani Culture named after Mirza Fatali Akhundzade in Tbilisi
on April 6.

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.