The illustration depicts an event that took place on September 26, 1907, in Kutaisi prison. 38 political prisoners attempted to escape the facility through a hole they dug, that led to the basement of a small sewing factory across the street. Detention officers noticed the hole during their regular rounds and were able to catch 4 out of 38 convicts.

Among the escaped was a famous Georgian writer, Leo Kiacheli, who wrote a novel ‘The Blood’ (1927) about the event. Two movies, ‘Cell №79’ (1930) and ‘The Escape at Dawn’ (1975) have also been produced about it.

 

Source: National Parliamentary Library of Georgia