Takaishvili Ekvtime

Takaishvili Ekvtime (1863–1953), Historian, philologist, archeologist and public figure. Academician of the Academy of Sciences of Georgia (1946), one of the participants in founding the Tbilisi University (1918) and one of its first professors (1918-21, 1945). He was born in Likhauri village, Georgia. In 1887 he graduated from the Faculty of History and Philology of Petersburg University. In 1890s he engaged in collecting and scientific processing of Georgian antiquities. He published important scientific works: Archeological Excursions, Description of Manuscripts. At the same time he edited collected works: Ancient Georgia, Georgian Antiquities and others, which also included his research works. E. Takaishvili was involved in active archeological activities. His work Materials for the Archeology of the Caucasus was awarded the Grand Gold Medal of the Imperial Archeological Society of Russia (1911).

In 1921, in the wake of Georgia’s annexation by Bolshevik Russia, Georgian Government left Tbilisi taking along the country’s historically valuable part of Tbilisi depositories of antiquities. E. Takaishvili was assigned to take care of packing and shipping the latter. In order to protect the valuable cargo from unforeseen hazards, he personally accompanied the treasure. Thereby he found himself in Marseille, where the Georgian national treasure was deposited at the local branch of the State Bank of France. E. Takaishvili himself settled in Chateau Leuville near Paris. After the French authorities annulled the legation of Georgian Government, Georgian immigrant community commissioned E. Takaishvili to guard the Georgian museum treasure. When WW II broke out, the Georgian national treasure (39 boxes) was transferred to Chateau de Versailles.

In immigration E. Takaishvili lived in extreme poverty. The hardest were the years of Nazi occupation of France. It would have been suffice for Eqvtime to sell one exponent of the treasure, to live years and years in clover. However, the staunch guard of national treasure flatly rejected similar proposals that were made to him by certain foreign countries.

In immigration E. Takaishvili continued his scientific activity, publishing researches on Georgian history and source studies. While living in France, he joined the Parisian Numismatic Society (1922) and Asian Society of Paris (1925).

In 1945 E. Takaishvili returned to Georgia, bringing back the national treasure. However, the Soviet authorities did not forgive him the years he had spent in immigration. In 1953, on his last way to Vake cemetery in Tbilisi, only a small group of people paid their last tribute to the watchful keeper of Georgian national treasure. In 1963, in connection with his 100th anniversary, his remains were transferred to Didube Pantheon; in 2000 he was reburied at Mtatsminda Pantheon.

Georgian Orthodox Church canonized Eqvtime Takaishvili for his unselfish life and deeds.