Museum of Soviet Occupation — Attraction in Tbilisi

The exhibition makes a strong impression through the richness of objects and photographs, as well as its critical approach to history. At the same time, it would benefit from a guiding narrative that connects the exhibits and helps visitors grasp the broader story. Without this, the abundance of portraits and documents can feel overwhelming and makes it harder to follow the overall historical thread.

Providing more political context would be helpful, for example by clarifying which forces were in conflict. It would also be valuable to explain more precisely what is meant by the “occupation” of Georgia, in which historical context this took place, and what the consequences were.

The language concept raises challenges: the exhibition seems designed for visitors who speak Georgian and Russian. For English speakers it is difficult to follow, while Russian-speaking visitors are confronted with a mountain of documents without interpretation, which can feel confusing or distancing.

The narrative often remains reduced to “perpetrators and victims,” without exploring more complex aspects. For instance, the role of Stalin as a Georgian is not addressed, and the frequent appearance of Georgian names on execution orders is not contextualized. Similarly, the role of Georgians in the Second World War, the wider Soviet context, and developments in other countries are not discussed.

Adding a perspective on the consequences of the occupation and a view toward the future would make the exhibition even stronger and allow visitors to better understand both the historical depth and the present-day relevance of these events.

In sum, this is a powerful and important exhibition that opens up critical questions. With a clearer narrative framework and additional context, it could resonate even more deeply with a broad...

Not worth even 1/4 of the exorbitant, RIDICULOUS entry fee of 30 GEL ($17.50 AUD!) for an exhibition that takes less than 15 minutes to see. It's one big room and a partial top floor filled with documents (all in Georgian & Russian, no translations), too many portraits of people, and a few historical artefacts/replicas behind glass cases with overly-wordy signs (long slabs of text detailing who, what, when, etc., dryly written like boring history books). Poorly curated with minimal narrative and little to engage visitors emotionally.

No introduction to the museum or the Soviet Occupation; no sound to make it engaging; ultra-low lighting that makes it hard to read signs; videos with little to no context given; no interesting human content like oral history interviews with older people who participated in the rebellions/their children, journal entries, etc.; and no sense of the link between the occupation and the fight over the 100 years since, including the current protests.

This place needs SO much more life, and SO much more content to justify its price. I wish I'd skipped it; I usually love learning about history, but I would have got more out of a good documentary I could have watched for free on YouTube. Staff selling tickets are also...

This is part of one floor of the Georgian National Museum. Much of the exhibition concerns the intrusion into Georgia in the early 1920s as the Bolsheviks took over Russia and expanded. You'll learn of the brutality, as Georgians who resisted were executed. The common photo you see is a bullet hole-riddled rail car that transported civilians. Much of the details end with the 1960s, with just a few details of the end of the USSR. If I were Georgian, this would be a good historical reminder. To be fair, I was expecting more about Soviet occupation across the years. It's a quick review. If you go for this, spend time in other museum exhibits. You'll see lots about early archaeological findings. The only photos I've included are from an exhibition of Iranian art from the mid-1800s. The paintings are an interesting contrast to lives for women today.

Visit to the Georgian Fine Arts museum as well. It's another location and...