The National Archives of Georgia () is the legal entity of public law under the Ministry of Justice of the nation of Georgia. The National Archives holds written documents, film documents, photos, and audio records, totaling more than five million exhibits. The exhibits preserved at the depositories of the archives are dated back to the 9th through 21st century. They include: historical, contemporary history, audio-visual archives and local archives from every region. The documents in the Archives are official, and their preservation has been established by law. Some of the preserved documents include texts from the First Republic, scientific archives, the parish books that hold information about the christening and the death of citizens, the gospel of the 9th century, Anchi gospel (12th century), Kings' deeds, private letters, verdicts, other legal monuments, photos from the 19th century, first film documents, and the documents of different state or private structures.
The History of the National Archives
The National Archives serve the political, economical, scientific and cultural interests of the country and as an ancestors’ documentary heritage is the essential trapping of the authority. In ancient Georgia, as well as in other countries, manuscripts were kept and preserved by their authors, secular and ecclesiastic jutoddictions – court and religious centers. Every jurisdiction would penerally need juridical standards and the documents depicting them, legislative acts, income: expense books, agreements, deeds, diplomatic letters (etc.) in internal and foreign relatives.
According to the indirect notifications it is confirmed that there was a royal archive in the 6th century that was not only the treasury but the depository for documents. Church and private archives also existed.
The modern archives in Georgia were established on April 23, 1920, according to the law about the establishment of Republic's Central Scientific Archive, issued by the Democratic Republic of Georgia. On July 1, 1921 the revolutionary committee of Georgia issued a decree “About the reorganization of the Archival Affair”. From 2004 the archival institution was under the Ministry of Justice of Georgia as the State department of Archives of Georgia.
In accordance with the law # 71 from March 12, 2007, issued by the Minister of Justice of Georgia, the legal entity the National Archives of Georgia was formed. At present, the state control of archival and clerical work fields, the development of the national archival fund, is in its authority.
The functions of the National Archives
The National Archives of Georgia under the state control independently ensures the ruling of archival affairs in Georgia, the improvement of clerical work and the development of the national archival fund.
The goals of the National Archives of Georgia are:
a) the supplement of the national archival fund; b) the description and the centralized registration of the national archival fund; c) to ensure the protection and the preservation of the documents of the national archival fund, the conservation, the restoration of the damaged documents, to create the insurance fund on the documents of the special value; d) to provide the free acknowledgment on the documents of the national archival fund according to the stated legislation; e) the organization, coordination, the normative and methodical ensuring of the work of the central archives and territorial organs – the local archives.
On the base of the law of Georgia "About the National Archival Fund and the National Archives", the National Archive realizes the registration, protection and the preservation of the documents of the national archival fund without the distinction of their place of preservation (among them the monuments of the cultural heritage from the national archival fund), also the state control and the supervision of the rules of the clerical work.
The National Archives of Georgia receives the documents of the national archival fund in time and regularized.
Realizes to display the documents representing the history of Georgia preserved in foreign Archives, prepares the sentences to acquire these documents or their copies.
Provides the protection of the archival documents preserved in the National Archives, the monitoring and the optimization arrangements of the conditions of their preservation.
Provides the free acknowledgment of the interested persons on the documents of the national archival fund according to the stated legislation.