Our mission is to protect, study, and develop the culture of traditional Georgian arms
Our Team - Who We Are
Levan Dvalishvili is an internationally published author who, among other works, has written several groundbreaking ethnographic articles on a wide range of research topics related to the history of traditional edged weapons and steel production in Georgia.
Levan graduated from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University in 2006 and has since participated in numerous ethnographic expeditions conducted in historical regions of Georgia, such as Racha, Lechkhumi, Imereti, Svaneti, Samegrelo, Adjara, Kartli, Khevsureti, and Kakheti.
Levan has made several significant contributions to the military ethnography of the Caucasus. One of his noteworthy works is a regional iconographic study on the origin and proliferation of 'shashka' sabers in 17th-century Georgia.
Levan's findings have significantly clarified a topic previously marred in controversies and conflicting viewpoints. His other long-term research efforts have focused on identifying traditional folk terminologies of steel and weapon-making crafts in the regions mentioned above.
He has also worked on identifying historically important production centers that have been forgotten over time. In his latest monograph, Levan explores the historical Armorers Raw in Tbilisi and traces the genealogy and origin of the Eliarashvili family, a prominent weaponsmith dynasty and nobility of 17th-19th century Georgia.
Besides extensive knowledge of the history of arms and armour of the Caucasus region and Georgia in particular, Levan has expertise in the Georgian folk heritage of traditional sports, communal law, judicial customs, and practices in historical Georgia.
Irakli Bakradze is a metalsmith, restoration specialist and trained historian who holds a Master's degree in archaeology from Georgian State University. His main research areas are medieval archaeological arms and armor found in Georgia and regions of the Middle East historically connected to the Caucasus.
Irakli has authored over ten scientific publications and participated in numerous international conferences. One of Irakli’s noteworthy works examined the peculiarities of silver decoration in a rare type of broadsword of West Georgian origin, which drew the attention of many researchers before, but mainly due to the highly unique geometry of the sword hilt and the characteristic of the scabbard.
Apart from academic research, Irakli has also pursued the practical aspects of traditional metallurgy since his student days. With years of experience in traditional blacksmithing and silversmithing techniques, he has developed a robust skill set.
Moreover, his work as an active conservator for the National Museum of Georgia has provided him with ample opportunity to hone his metal restoration skills, making Irakli an invaluable asset to any team.
After setting up his own forge and workshop, Irakli concentrated his efforts on re-creating traditional techniques for producing various historically known regional types of Georgian daggers and knives.
Since the establishment of the Center (GCSPTA), Irakli's workshop has assumed the capacity of its practical laboratory.
Vakhtang Kiziriya, M.S., is an internationally published author and co-author of articles on traditional Georgian arms, related social customs, and martial traditions.
Over the past two decades, Vakhtang has acquired substantial experience as a field and archival researcher. He also conducted assessments and reviews of Georgian military artefacts in international private and state collections, including an assembly of edged weapons of Caucasus in the Metropolitan Museum of Arts (New York) collection in 2012 and a rare type of Georgian sabers in the collection of Military-Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps in St. Peterburg (Russia) in 2015, in both cases successfully establishing provenance and connection of items to prominent figures of Georgian aristocracy.
Vakhtang's expertise and contribution are acknowledged in several prominent monographs, such as "Georgia: The Land below the Caucasus" by P. Skinner, "Arms and Armor of Caucasus" by K. Rivkin, and the documentary project "In the Land of the Lost Crusaders" (a joint venture by GFM, Georgia, and Pomegranate Studios, USA), among many others.
As a translator, his most notable contribution is editorial and consultation on translating military sections of Arnold Zisserman's historical memoirs, "25 Years in the Caucasus, 1842-1867," published by Narikala Publications, NY.
Vakhtang's path of formal education includes Moscow State University, New Jersey City University, and Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.