Carousel at the top of the world in Tbilisi

High on the mountain ridge at the western side of Tbilisi is Mtatsminda Park with a view of the capital city. In Mtatsminda Park is a carousel – a merry-go-round ride for children.

The carousel is from the Bertazzon amusement ride company based in Sernaglia della Battaglia in Italy. They produce bumper cars, swings, and other rides. Three brothers – Luigi, Ferruccio, and Marcello Bertazzon – began fixing amusement rides in 1951, and established their own business, Bertazzon 3B in 1963, making their own rides. It is a generational family business with Michele, Alex, and Patrizia Bertazzon taking over the company in 2009.

The version of the carousel in Mtatsminda Park is a classic Venetian carousel. It is the small model at 4.7 meters (15.5 feet) with a steel frame, ball-bearing mounted rotating components, and hand-painted decorations which include the horses and scenery panels. The panels have classic 18th century scenes of Venice.

MARTINA NICOLLS

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MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: The Paris Residences of James Joyce (2020), Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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