A construction trench becomes an archaeological window
TBILISI, Georgia — Roadworks six meters beneath Rustaveli Avenue have uncovered pottery fragments from what archaeologists believe was a 10th- or 11th-century ceramic workshop. Georgian National Museum director David Lordkipanidze told Reuters the material is among the oldest medieval work found in the capital.
The avenue project began this summer to add pedestrian crossings, improve signs and make other upgrades. It has brought traffic disruption and difficult walking conditions, but the excavation opened a rare view below one of the city's principal modern streets.
What the fragments may reveal
Preliminary analysis of ornamentation places the pottery in a period when Tbilisi was under Arab rule and served as an important Silk Road center. The city's successive connections to Umayyad, Abbasid, Seljuk, Mongol, Persian and Russian power help explain why a workshop can illuminate trade as well as local craft.
Archaeologists plan to bring the fragments to the National Museum for 3D scanning and detailed study. That work may refine the date, document forms and manufacturing techniques, and compare the cache with other regional sites. Until then, the early interpretation should remain labeled preliminary.
Preservation must share space with a living city
The roadworks also revealed streams connected to the sulfurous waters behind Tbilisi's name, commonly translated as a warm place. City officials face a November construction deadline and calls to investigate claims that asbestos was disturbed, showing how heritage, infrastructure and worker safety can converge in one trench.
The featured image is an authentic Creative Commons file photograph of Rustaveli Avenue. It shows the street discussed but not the current excavation, pottery fragments, underground streams or any alleged hazardous material.
Limits and what to watch
The 10th-to-11th-century date is preliminary, the fragments have not completed study and the discovery does not resolve every question about Tbilisi's founding or medieval population.
The next development to watch is 3D scanning, laboratory analysis, museum documentation and the city's investigation of construction-site concerns.
Sources and further reading
Reuters: Tbilisi roadworks uncover pottery cache ↗
UNESCO: Tbilisi Historic District tentative listing ↗