A gem from the „Svaneti Spirit“ group

The video, probably shot in 1945, which the „Svaneti Spirit Group“ has kindly made available to the public, is dedicated to Kako Khvintelani, the head of the cultural centre and film department in Mestia. It shows the rural cultural landscapes, the characteristic mountain peaks and the people doing their daily work in the villages, such as mowing, threshing, milking and cheese making. Many of these are farming practices and traditions that were still well developed in the Soviet era and are still widespread to some extent today. Kako Khvintelani brought a professional film crew with equipment to Svaneti.

Further articles on Svaneti in the Soviet era from my work in Svaneti: 
Svaneti Series | The Svans as members of the ‚Oriental Other‘ in the Soviet film „Salt for Svanetia“ (1930) by Mikhail Kalatozov | A visual commentary (Part I)
Svaneti Series | The snow catastrophe of winter 1986/87

Particularly noteworthy are, on the one hand, various rituals in the context of a funeral and, on the other, shots showing the changes brought about by Sovietisation:

  • People in modern clothing such as men in suits, women and girls without headscarves
  • Mountaineers who use the natural environment for the purpose of climbing rather than for work
  • Collapsed old buildings and new buildings such as schools, collective farm buildings etc.
  • Domestic family life of a modern family with two children, showing toys, modern interior furnishings such as wardrobes, beds etc. in contrast to traditional defence architecture

Text: Stefan Applis (2024)