Dadiani Palace treasures in Georgia's west now on Google Arts & Culture display
The Tsaishi Crucifixion Icon (1611-1615) is considered "the most important Georgian relic of the Middle Ages", the online display says. Photo: Art Palace museum.
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Major historical exhibits from the 19th century Dadiani Palace in Georgia's west can now be found online by visitors of Google Arts & Culture, an online repository of artwork and biographies of notable persons from history.
Showcasing icons, artwork and accessories telling the long history of Christian faith and ceremonial traditions from across Georgian regions, the exposition involves items from the 16th to 18th centuries, from the Kortskheli Icon of Jesus Christ commissioned by Levan II Dadiani of the noble family, to the Tsaishi Icon of Virgin Mary.
Published on the Google platform by Tbilisi's Art Palace museum, the exhibits were selected by the venue's Mariam Kikvadze based on work by researcher Lili Beraia - who also authored a recently released book on the riches of the palace.
The Kortskheli Icon of Jesus Christ, dated between 1611-1657. Photo: Art Palace museum.
Icons, religious works of art and ceremonial objects were adored and worshipped by Orthodox Christian parish in Georgia during past centuries."
Today, those objects tell a lot about ... [the] tastefulness of certain epoch, important aspects of historical events, fashion trends from past decades and eras," an introduction for the exhibition says.
Located in the Samegrelo province in the west, the palace served as residence of the historical principality, with rulers seeking to renovate and enrich the residence to write chapters glorifying their own reign in history, the exposition summary from Art Palace said.
The Dadiani Palace is also symbolic for serving as the residence of the final regent of the Principality of Samegrelo, as the region’s autonomy was abolished by the Russian Imperial rule in 1857.
The Tsaishi Icon of Virgin Mary (1622-1639), one of the exhibits in the online showcase. Photo: Art Palace museum.
The complex includes a palace for Ekaterine Chavchavadze-Dadiani, the final acting regent of the principality, as well as a residence of her son Niko Dadiani, a monastery and an adjacent botanical garden.
Boasting the largest ballroom in nobility residences across Georgia, it has been described by the National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation as a European-style palace with "unique architecture”.
During the 19th century the palace also hosted nobility from abroad including distinguished historical figures, among them pacifist and novelist Bertha von Suttner, the first Nobel Peace Prize-winning woman.
The estate, later transformed into a museum, entered a major renovation effort in 2015 and reopened recently.
After long-term negotiations with the owner, Tbilisi Art Palace Museum has acquired Georgian Queen Darejan Dadiani’s (King Erekle II’s wife, 18th century) unique pendant with the financial support of Georgian doctor Zaza Chanturaia.
A newly released catalogue of historical treasures from the Dadiani Palace of western Georgian nobility brings stories of the exhibits from the 19th century estate to those with interest in cultural heritage.
Google Arts & Culture, a sprawling online repository of artwork collections and personalities from art history, has unveiled a page for an 18th century portrait of a Georgian king on the International Museum Day.
Western Georgia’s Dadiani Palace complex, one of the major monuments of the country’s 19th century nobility, will soon open after renovation and with a brand-new museum venue.
Tbilisi’s Art Palace venue achieved a new milestone this week after its exhibition of artwork on Google Arts and Culture online platform became the largest digital repository from the South Caucasus.
A historic palace complex belonging to Georgia’s famous noble Dadiani family, which houses a piece of the Virgin Mary’s robe and Napoleon Bonaparte’s death mask, is being restored from its current state of disrepair.
Tbilisi's Art Palace museum and the Dadiani Palace venue in Georgia's west have joined the likes of Musee du Louvre in Paris, State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg and Thanjavur Maratha Palace in Tamil Nadu on the roster of palace museums on the Network of European Royal Residences.
Bronze monument "Kolkhish Nana" has been stolen from the yard of Georgia's historical Dadiani Palace, located in Samegrelo region's city of Zugdidi. Dadiani Palace museum employees reportedly noticed that the monument was missing earlier this morning.