The Final Touches to Complete the Portrait of Baratashvili

Abstract

In XIX-XX centuries many of Nikoloz Baratashvili’s unknown works were discovered, multiple studies highlighting them were conducted, dozens of important publications came out. However, none of the editions includes the documentary materials preserved at the National Archives of Georgia. These materials contain hitherto unknown details of the poet’s biography such as: questionnaires for issuing N. Baratashvili’s birth certificate and date of issue; protocols on the commencement of “official duties” and holding of various positions; official lists that are identical to today’s CV; acknowledgement for courage; papers reflecting precious time wasted on “bureaucratic” officialdom activities, etc.

It is high time to prepare a scholarly edition of the works of the poet-romanticist, a founder of a new era in Georgian literature who is recognized on a par with Byron and Hugo, which meets the modern standards and encompasses in it the archival documents. This can add many interesting details to the unusual portrait of the poet.