Georgian National Museum

The Simon Janashia Museum of Georgia (Georgian: სიმონ ჯანაშიას სახელობის საქართველოს მუზეუმი), formerly known as the State Museum of History of Georgia, is one of the main history museums in Tbilisi, Georgia, which displays the country’s principal archaeological findings. The Museum evolved from the Museum of the Caucasian Department of the Russian Imperial Geographic Society, founded on May 10, 1852 and converted into the Caucasian Museum on the initiative of the German explorer Gustav Radde in 1865. After Georgia regained independence from Russia (1918), the museum was renamed into the Museum of Georgia in 1919. Noe Kipiani was the first director of the museum. A bulk of its collection was evacuated by the Government of Georgia to Europe following the Bolshevik takeover of the country in 1921, and was returned to Soviet Georgia through the efforts of the Georgian émigré scholar Ekvtime Takaishvili in 1945. In 1947, the Museum was named after the late Georgian historian Simon Janashia. The Museum suffered significantly during the years of post-Soviet turmoil in Georgia early in the 1990s: It was first damaged in fighting during the military coup in 1991-2, followed by the destruction of part of its collection by fire. In 2004, the Janashia Museum was integrated with other leading Georgian museums under a joint management system of the Georgian National Museum. The Museum occupies chronologically and stylistically diverse buildings in downtown Tbilisi, with the main exhibition located in Rustaveli Avenue. This latter edifice was designed utilizing elements of medieval Georgian décor by the architect Nikolay Severov in 1910 in the place of an older building authored by A. Zaltsman. The Museum houses hundreds of thousands of Georgian and Caucasian archaeological and ethnographical artifacts. A permanent exhibition chronologically follows the development of Georgia’s material culture from the Bronze Age to the early 20th century. Some of the Museum’s most valuable exhibits include the Homo Ergaster fossils discovered at Dmanisi; the Akhalgori hoard of the 5th century BC which contains unique examples of jewelry, blending Achaemenid and local inspirations; a collection of approximately 80,000 coins, chiefly of Georgian minting; medieval icons and goldsmith pieces brought here from various archeological sites in Georgia; Shukhuti's mosaic, a bath mosaic from the village of Shukhuti that dates from the 4th-5th century; and a lapidary which includes one of the world’s richest collection of Urartian inscriptions.

The Museum of the Soviet Occupation (Georgian: საბჭოთა ოკუპაციის მუზეუმი, sabch’ot’a okupats’iis muzeumi) is a history museum in Tbilisi, Georgia, documenting the seven decades of the Soviet rule in Georgia (1921–1991) and dedicated to the history of the anti-occupational, national-liberation movement of Georgia, to the victims of the Soviet political repressions throughout this period. It was established on May 26, 2006. The Museum is a part of the Georgian National Museum (GNM).

The Art Museum of Georgia (AMG) (Georgian: საქართველოს ხელოვნების მუზეუმი, sak'art'velos khelovnebis muzeumi), alternatively known as Shalva Amiranashvili Museum of Fine Arts, is one of the leading museums in the country of Georgia. Falling under the umbrella of the Georgian National Museum, AMG is located near Freedom Square, Tbilisi and possesses around 140,000 items of Georgian, Oriental, Russian, and other European art.

National Youth and Children's Palace (Georgian: მოსწავლე ახალგაზრდობის ეროვნული სასახლე), sometimes referred as Pioneer Palace, National Palace or by its original name – Viceroy's Palace, is a historical building located on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, Georgia. The history of the building dates back to 1802, when the establishment of the Russian government in Georgia was followed by the appointment of a Commander-in-Chief of the Caucasus in Tiflis. A small building was built for him in 1802. However, in 1807 the building was demolished and replaced with a new one. It was an example of Russian classicism, the most grandiose building in Tbilisi at the time, which was also considered a kind of symbol of the government at the time. After that the palace was rebuilt several times. In 1818 it was demolished and a new building was designed by architect Brownmiller. With this change, the original administration house became the real palace-residence of the Commander-in-Chief. In 1845-47, the architect Semyonov, invited from Russia, thoroughly changed the look of this whole palace and, in fact, built an interesting and unique building in the style of Classicism. At the same time, the palace garden and a fountain was built. In 1865, Otto Jakob Simonson, a Swedish architect working in Tbilisi, began a thorough reconstruction of the building and completed it in 4 years. In 1869, the Viceroy's palace took its final form - as it is today. Simonson significantly increased the palace built by Semyonov and gave it a new look. During the various periods of Russian Imperial rule in Georgia, the palace was sometimes the residence and palace of the Commander-in-Chief of the Caucasus, and sometimes of the Viceroy In 1917 the palace housed the government of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. On May 26, 1918, the dissolution of the federation was announced in this palace. The National Council of Georgia, convened at the palace on the same day, declared Georgia's independence at 5:10 p.m. Two days later, the independence of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan was declared in the same palace. After that, the Government of the Democratic Republic of Georgia housed in the palace. At the same time, the palace was first the seat of the National Council and then of the Constituent Assembly of Georgia. On February 21, 1921, the Constituent Assembly of Georgia adopted the Constitution of the Democratic Republic in this very palace. After the sovietization of Georgia, the palace first housed the Georgian Revolutionary Committee, then the governments of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and Soviet Georgia. In 1937 the palace was handed over to children. On April 2, 1941, the palace was opened for children.

The National Parliamentary Library of Georgia (Georgian: საქართველოს პარლამენტის ეროვნული ბიბლიოთეკა, sakartvelos p'arlament'is erovnuli bibliotek'a) is a governmental organization under the Parliament of Georgia. It is the main book depository of Georgia, as well as the most important cultural, educational, scientific, informational and methodological centre.

Georgian Museum of Fine Arts (Georgian: ქართული სახვითი ხელოვნების მუზეუმი) is a private art museum located on the Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, Georgia (country). The construction broke ground in 2013 and is the only building in Georgia built purposely to house art exhibitions. The museum official opening was held on September 26, 2018, while it opened to the public on October 2, 2018. The museum houses over 3500 artworks, created by over 80 artists during the last 70 years. The museum exhibits private art collection of the family of Dr. George (Gia) Jokhtaberidze and Manana Shevardadze, founders of Magticom, the largest telecommunications company in Georgia.

Rustaveli Avenue (Georgian: რუსთაველის გამზირი, Rust'avelis Gamziri), formerly known as Golovin Street, is the central avenue in Tbilisi named after the medieval Georgian poet, Shota Rustaveli. The avenue starts at Freedom Square and extends for about 1.5 km in length, before it turns into an extension of Kostava Street. Rustaveli is often considered the main thoroughfare of Tbilisi due to the numerous governmental, public, cultural, and business buildings that are located along or near the avenue. The Parliament of Georgia building, the Georgian National Opera Theater, the Rustaveli State Academic Theater, the Georgian Academy of Sciences, Kashveti Church, the Georgian Museum of Fine Arts, Simon Janashia Museum of Georgia (part of the Georgian National Museum), and Biltmore Hotel Tbilisi among others, are all located on Rustaveli. In 1989, tens of thousands of Georgians gathered before the House of Government on Rustaveli Avenue. An attack by the Soviet Spetsnaz forces killed many protesters in the April 9 tragedy.

The Kashveti Church of St. George (Georgian: ქაშვეთის წმინდა გიორგის სახელობის ტაძარი) is a Georgian Orthodox Church in central Tbilisi, located across from the Parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue. The Kashveti church was constructed between 1904 and 1910 by the architect Leopold Bilfeldt, who based his design on the medieval Samtavisi Cathedral. The construction was sponsored by the Georgian nobility and bourgeoisie. Kashveti was built on the site of a damaged church built of brick at the request of the Amilakhvari family in 1753. Significant contributions to the current church's ornate design were made by N. Agladze. Kashveti's frescoes were painted by the influential Georgian painter, Lado Gudiashvili, in 1947. The name "kashveti" is derived from Georgian words kva for a "stone" and shva "to give birth." Legend has it the prominent 6th century monk David of Gareja of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers was accused by a woman of making her a pregnant in Tbilisi. David prophesied his denial would be proved when she gave birth to a stone. She did, and the place received the name of "kashveti".

The St. Alexander Nevsky Military Cathedral of Tiflis (Georgian: ტფილისის სამხედრო ტაძარი, tp'ilisis samkhedro tadzari; Russian: Тифлисский Александро-Невский военный собор, Tiflisskiy Aleksandro-Nevskiy voyenny sobor) was an Orthodox Christian cathedral in downtown Tiflis (now Tbilisi), Georgia, constructed during the Imperial Russian rule in the 1871-1872 and 1889–1897 and demolished by the Soviet authorities in 1930. The novel design of the cathedral became a standard for the emerging Neo-Byzantine style well before the cathedral was completed.

The Parliament of Georgia (Georgian: საქართველოს პარლამენტი, romanized: sakartvelos p'arlament'i) the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members; of these, 120 are proportional representatives and 30 are elected through single-member district plurality system, representing their constituencies. According to the 2017 constitutional amendments, the Parliament will transfer to fully proportional representation in 2024. All members of the Parliament are elected for four years on the basis of universal human suffrage. The Constitution of Georgia grants the Parliament of Georgia a central legislative power, which is limited by the legislatures of the autonomous republics of Adjara and Abkhazia.

Ghunib Square (Georgian: ღუნიბის მოედანი, romanized: ghunibis moedani) was a square in Old Tbilisi on the site where the Georgian Parliament building now stands on Rustaveli Avenue. The square was named to commemorate the capture of Shamil's fortress - Gunib, in Dagestan by the Russian army on March 25, 1859. In connection with the construction of the Alexander Nevsky Military Temple in 1897, the square was renamed the Temple Square ("Soborn"), but it virtually ceased to exist.

The Tbilisi Art Gallery (Georgian: თბილისის სამხატვრო გალერეა), or the National Gallery is an art gallery located on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi. Historically, it is known to Tbilisians as the Blue Gallery, taking its name from the various shades of the blue-green paint previously adorning the facade, although the building is now painted grey.