Abkhazia

Stalin's Abkhazia Dacha a Modest Retreat

Elizabeth Owen Jun 10, 2010
Stalin's Mysra dacha was built in 1932 on a densely wooded site above the Black Sea known for its curative effect on asthmatics. Stalin's Mysra dacha was built in 1932 on a densely wooded site above the Black Sea known for its curative effect on asthmatics.
A gazebo at the Mysra dacha provides a secluded spot for a tête-à-tête. A gazebo at the Mysra dacha provides a secluded spot for a tête-à-tête.
An imposing staircase - with benches at each level - stretches from a walkway above the beach to the Mysra dacha's backyard. An imposing staircase - with benches at each level - stretches from a walkway above the beach to the Mysra dacha's backyard.
The foyer of Stalin's Mysra dacha has a minimalist design, a style favored throughout the two-storey house. The foyer of Stalin's Mysra dacha has a minimalist design, a style favored throughout the two-storey house.
This first-floor bathroom, complete with bidet, is nearly the same size as its adjoining bedroom. This first-floor bathroom, complete with bidet, is nearly the same size as its adjoining bedroom.
The Soviet leader himself reportedly favored the armchair on the right in the foyer. The Soviet leader himself reportedly favored the armchair on the right in the foyer.
Visitors would have ascended this staircase to see the vacationing "Great Leader" in his office. Visitors would have ascended this staircase to see the vacationing "Great Leader" in his office.
Stalin reportedly moved from bedroom to bedroom to confuse his guards about his exact location. Stalin reportedly moved from bedroom to bedroom to confuse his guards about his exact location.
Paneling in the second-floor formal dining room is one of the few dacha details thought to date from Stalin's time. Paneling in the second-floor formal dining room is one of the few dacha details thought to date from Stalin's time.
Stalin often chose to sleep in his second-floor office at the Mysra dacha, according to the de facto State Dacha Director. Stalin often chose to sleep in his second-floor office at the Mysra dacha, according to the de facto State Dacha Director.
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Stalin's two-story Abkhazia vacation home, known as the Mysra dacha, sits at the end of a twisting 14-kilometer road amidst flowering magnolia, honeysuckle bushes and towering trees. The relatively modest, three-bedroom house offers little visual sense of the Stalin period, with most of the furniture having been shuttled to other buildings under ex-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. The furniture the house now contains - set off in taupe and mustard tones - more closely resembles the decor of a 1960s-style motel.

Elizabeth Owen is EurasiaNet's regional news coordinator based in Tbilisi.

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