Among the rich treasury of Georgian Christian art, so-called pre-altar crosses hold an eminent place. Up to 3 metres in height, they can still be found in some churches in the mountainous region Svaneti at their original place – on high pedestals in front of the entrance to the chancel. Their wooden kernels, being wrapped up with textiles, bear chased silver or silvergilt plates. These plates show representations of Christ, the Mother of God, saints and angels which are mostly unified into an iconographic programme. Some of the crosses are crowned by a “cap” that is decorated as well.
The Georgian pre-altar crosses have no direct parallels in the Medieval Christian art, neither of the East nor the West, although there can be traced some common roots with Irish High Crosses and the monumental crosses of Romanesque cross-altars. It may be assumed that they are a reminiscence of the Golgotha Cross in Jerusalem reflecting the cult of the Holy Cross which had been developed in Georgia from the 5th century onwards.
Following the Georgian chronicles, this cult was displayed in different forms. We find elements of the Byzantine ecclesiastical and state ideology after Emperor Constantine the Great. But before all, it was conditioned by the close connection of the East Georgian, i.e. Iberian, Church with the See of Antioch and, thus, the Holy Land. The sacred places there were the destination of monks and pilgrims, among them noblemen like Peter the Iberian, the later bishop of Maiuma. At the same time, they became the model for a “Second Jerusalem” in Mcxeta, the place of the conversion of the Iberians by St. Nino in the 4th century. To the “copies” of the Holy Land belonged also the most venerated crosses of Jerusalem: the triumphal cross on the Mount of Olives and the memorial cross on Golgotha.
Both crosses and their liturgical meaning melted in the Georgian cult of the Holy Cross. Following the Jerusalem liturgy, it included elements like the ad crucem services in Jerusalem, which were described by the 4th-century pilgrim Egeria. There was even created a special Feast of the Cross of Mcxeta, Aghvsebis Zatikis Zatiki, which corresponded to the Jerusalem cross feasts.
The strong orientation towards Jerusalem ended in the period of the 10th to the beginning of 11th century with the unification of the Georgian lands. The mighty Christian kingdom of Georgia (Sakartvelo) with its unified Church displayed its power from now on according to Byzantine splendour, introducing with the liturgy of Constantinople also the established Metaphrastic hagiography and the canon of Byzantine iconography, although adapted to its own conceptions.
From the rich and mostly unknown treasury of pre-altar crosses in Svaneti we may conclude that these crosses became a phenomenon of this change. Having lost their original function, they underwent a transformation from liturgical to cult objects. As latter, they continued to be of spiritual importance for the celebration of the Feast of the Cross in Mcxeta, the cradle of Georgian Christianity that was copied all over the country. But now, the monumental crosses were already decorated in a Byzantine style, following the iconographic schemes of processional crosses and wall-paintings. In Svaneti, we find some old fragments preserved with the Middle Byzantine decoration and showing the dramatic change from “old” to “new”.
The iconographic repertoire of the “byzantinized” crosses involves representations of Christ, the Mother of God, apostles, church fathers and saints which appear together with angels and Christian symbols, especially the cross, in the context of standard themes, like the Deesis or the Dodekaorton. The Mother of God is often combined with St. Barbara, the most venerated female saint, and warrior saints. Like on icons and in wall-paintings, the holy warriors are represented in varying combinations. St. George, the most popular of them, appears also with scenes of his life, so on the marvellous 11th-century cross from Seti.
The custom of erecting pre-altar crosses ended in the 17th century.
source: byzantinecongress.org.uk/comms/Schrade.pdf
www.byzantinecongress.org.uk
The Georgian pre-altar crosses have no direct parallels in the Medieval Christian art, neither of the East nor the West, although there can be traced some common roots with Irish High Crosses and the monumental crosses of Romanesque cross-altars. It may be assumed that they are a reminiscence of the Golgotha Cross in Jerusalem reflecting the cult of the Holy Cross which had been developed in Georgia from the 5th century onwards.
Following the Georgian chronicles, this cult was displayed in different forms. We find elements of the Byzantine ecclesiastical and state ideology after Emperor Constantine the Great. But before all, it was conditioned by the close connection of the East Georgian, i.e. Iberian, Church with the See of Antioch and, thus, the Holy Land. The sacred places there were the destination of monks and pilgrims, among them noblemen like Peter the Iberian, the later bishop of Maiuma. At the same time, they became the model for a “Second Jerusalem” in Mcxeta, the place of the conversion of the Iberians by St. Nino in the 4th century. To the “copies” of the Holy Land belonged also the most venerated crosses of Jerusalem: the triumphal cross on the Mount of Olives and the memorial cross on Golgotha.
Both crosses and their liturgical meaning melted in the Georgian cult of the Holy Cross. Following the Jerusalem liturgy, it included elements like the ad crucem services in Jerusalem, which were described by the 4th-century pilgrim Egeria. There was even created a special Feast of the Cross of Mcxeta, Aghvsebis Zatikis Zatiki, which corresponded to the Jerusalem cross feasts.
The strong orientation towards Jerusalem ended in the period of the 10th to the beginning of 11th century with the unification of the Georgian lands. The mighty Christian kingdom of Georgia (Sakartvelo) with its unified Church displayed its power from now on according to Byzantine splendour, introducing with the liturgy of Constantinople also the established Metaphrastic hagiography and the canon of Byzantine iconography, although adapted to its own conceptions.
From the rich and mostly unknown treasury of pre-altar crosses in Svaneti we may conclude that these crosses became a phenomenon of this change. Having lost their original function, they underwent a transformation from liturgical to cult objects. As latter, they continued to be of spiritual importance for the celebration of the Feast of the Cross in Mcxeta, the cradle of Georgian Christianity that was copied all over the country. But now, the monumental crosses were already decorated in a Byzantine style, following the iconographic schemes of processional crosses and wall-paintings. In Svaneti, we find some old fragments preserved with the Middle Byzantine decoration and showing the dramatic change from “old” to “new”.
The iconographic repertoire of the “byzantinized” crosses involves representations of Christ, the Mother of God, apostles, church fathers and saints which appear together with angels and Christian symbols, especially the cross, in the context of standard themes, like the Deesis or the Dodekaorton. The Mother of God is often combined with St. Barbara, the most venerated female saint, and warrior saints. Like on icons and in wall-paintings, the holy warriors are represented in varying combinations. St. George, the most popular of them, appears also with scenes of his life, so on the marvellous 11th-century cross from Seti.
The custom of erecting pre-altar crosses ended in the 17th century.
source: byzantinecongress.org.uk/comms/Schrade.pdf
www.byzantinecongress.org.uk
No comments:
Post a Comment