Step into the Story of Effendi Villa
Effendi Villa accumulates
resources, inspiration and
collaboration opportunities to
make a positive impact on the
region of Adjara
Beautifully nestled against the protective mountains of Lesser Caucasus and the Black Sea Effendi Villa, a cultural heritage site, has always been a landmark of the region of Adjara, Georgia.
The region of Adjara has been a crossroads for diverse cultures and religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. This region has also been of great political interest for countries such as Turkey, Russia, England, Germany, Sweden and France. Residents of these countries moved to the region of Adjara and settled there in the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. They also brought and spread their religious and cultural heritage in the region. Nowadays, one can still find traces of the colonial period in Adjara in architectural monuments and buildings such as Effendi Villa.
Effendi Villa is the only existing monument to the turn of the 20th century history, architecture and everyday life of a family in the region of Adjara, Georgia.
Built by the Italian architects, Effendi Villa reflects the lifestyle of a Georgian-Turkish-Russian-Swedish-Romanian noble family, with its happiness and tragedies, victories and misfortunes. The house is richly decorated with mouldings and carvings illustrating the traditional crafts, cultural peculiarities and history of that time.
Effendi Villa was once the setting for prestigious receptions and meetings on international diplomacy. Later the house changed a few types of occupancy – a public school, military facilities, warehouse and a summer camp – before it was abandoned for a couple of decades.
The story of Effendi Villa reflects successive political regimes in the region of Adjara since the times the building was built there. The planned renewal of Effendi Villa as an accessible public space for cultural and educational activities, through the process of preservation and rehabilitation, is a witness of emerging initiatives and new dynamics shaping “Adjara of tomorrow”. Thus, Effendi Villa might be considered as a testimony of shifts in the political landscape of Adjara and Georgia on the whole.