Kutaisi State Historical Museum

The Kutaisi State Historical Museum, a few minutes' walk from the central square, holds one of the richest collections in Georgia outside Tbilisi. Its galleries trace the story of western Georgia from the Stone Age through ancient Colchis to the medieval kingdom and the Kingdom of Imereti. Look for Colchian bronze axes and belt plates, Greek and local pottery, and small silver coins minted in Colchis, alongside finds from excavations around Kutaisi and in the mountain valleys to the north.

The medieval collection is the highlight: chased silver and gilded icons, processional crosses and book covers from Gelati and other monasteries of the region, with illuminated manuscripts and royal charters. An ethnographic section shows costumes, weapons and household objects from Imereti, Racha and Svaneti. It is an ideal rainy-day visit and helps make sense of the churches you will see around the city.

The museum grew out of collections assembled by a Kutaisi society for history and ethnography and opened to the public in 1912. In the Soviet period it took in church treasures from monasteries across western Georgia, which is why its medieval metalwork is so strong. Parts of the building and its displays have been renovated in stages since independence.