← Alexander Engel

Panoramic View of Tbilisi and "Mukhrani ferry", 1903

Ferry (borani) crossing the Mtkvari River in front of Tbilisi, transporting people between the two banks of the city, 1903.

This photograph shows a panoramic view of Tbilisi from the Mukhrani side of the Mtkvari River in 1903. In the foreground a ferry (borani) is visible on the river. Such ferries were commonly used to transport people, animals, and goods across the Mtkvari before bridges and modern transport infrastructure fully developed. The image illustrates both the urban structure of Tbilisi at the beginning of the twentieth century and the importance of the river as a route of everyday movement within the city.