Telephone Exhibition (2019)

The first telephone in Tbilisi rang in April 1882. Naturally, it looked very different from the devices we use today.

Most of us have seen early telephones only in films or books - as distant historical objects rather than real artifacts.

Private collectors Khatuna and Alexander Zumbulidze decided not to limit themselves to images from stories and cinema and began collecting historical telephones themselves. The couple acquired their first collectible telephone - a red wooden model - in 1989.

In June 2015, during a devastating flood in Tbilisi, the Zumbulidze family’s collection was severely damaged. Several exhibits were washed away, and only part of the collection could be saved.

In June 2019, 44 historical telephones that survived the flood were exhibited at Experimentorium for the first time.

For one month, visitors had the opportunity to explore the evolution of telephone communication through authentic, carefully preserved artifacts - each carrying its own story of survival, memory, and technological history.