There was a large earthquake which destroyed this building, then used as the central railway station, on 26 July 1963. There were substantial offers of help from around the world following the disaster, which had killed over 1,000 people and left 200,000 people homeless, with 80% of the city centre destroyed.
I quite like exhibits like this, a tangible reminder of the help that was offered by others. This is a mobile kitchen provided by the German Red Cross that was used in the Taftalidze district where residential buildings were being rapidly constructed. In the meantime, people were living in tents and this would have been heavily used to keeping people fed. There must have been some excitement about the grand urban vision being created here, but food matters more in the short-term.
And a nice sticker because even amid destruction there should be a bit of branding. Civilisation might be partly shelter and partly food, but it’s important that everyone knows who bought the ladle….