However hard it is to gain independence, making it enduring and immortal is harder.
Heydar Aliyev
The house-museum of Uzeir Hajibeyli in Shusha
The house-museum of Uzeir Hajibeyli in Shusha has been restored by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.
The house of Uzeir Hajibeyli was constructed in the 19th century. In 1959, the building started to function as a house-museum. After the city of Shusha was occupied by Armenians, the building stopped functioning as a museum, with almost all the exhibits being looted and the building destroyed. Out of 1700 exhibits, only 136 were possible to rescue.
Restoration works in the house-museum of Uzeir Hajibeyli started in April 2022. The restoration works covered conducting of examinations according to the primary view of the house, reinforcing the foundation, restoration of flooring, façade and roof cover, interior and exterior decoration works, installation of doors, windows and engineering and communication systems, as well as greenery planting in the backyard. The museum was recommissioned on September 19, 2024.
A new exposition was created at the end of the restoration works. Here are showcased the rescued exhibits of the house-museum of Uzeir Hajibeyli according to the museum’s concept.
On the 1st floor of the cultural site are displayed documents, information and other various exhibits related to Uzeir Hajibeyli’s family, years of childhood, and his education. In the 2nd room on this floor are displayed documents related to Uzeir Hajibeyli’s education at the Gori Teachers Seminary, his pedagogical activity, works he was the author of, and articles written by him. Here is also a fragment with notes from the romans “Sensiz” (without you) along the wall.
On the 2nd floor are displayed playbills and programmes of the first premieres of staged works of the composer, as well as photos of his students, and his trips. Here is also a fragment with notes from the opera “Koroghlu” along the wall.
In the house-museum, there is also a wall designed to include a collage consisting of sketches drawn for characters from staged works by Uzeir Hajibeyli, as well as programmes and playbills of these works. Frames from the films made on the basis of the composer’s life, activity, and his works are showcased in that section.
