#Exhibit of the Month

From the early days of Christianity, the cross meant not only an instrument of torture, but also a symbol of victory over death, a symbol of salvation. The object is made of silver, having the shape of a Byzantine cross with trapezoidal edges of the arms. The side arms and the one at the bottom seem to be turned inside a vessel (chalice (?)) with the trapezoidal "foot". The arms of the cross and of the "chalice" were ended with a decorative element in the shape of a sphere (drop). The cross has a decoration in relief, executed in the technique of filigree and granulation, consisting of drops, double and triple cords, circles with a drop in the center, and trefoils (?). In the center of the cross, at the intersection of the arms, there is a round mount with a cord-like edge, in which the pomegranate fruit is located. However, the main decorative element is the images of four peacocks turned to the right, with a snake in the beak, arranged on all the arms of the cross. The image of the peacocks is rendered in an artistic way, and their tails are stylized in the shape of a palmette.
The peacock, originated from India, due to its luxurious fan-shaped tail, was considered a symbol of the Sun. In ancient Greece, they were considered the sacred birds of the goddess Hera, and in ancient Rome they were considered the sacred birds of the goddess Juno. In Kievan Rus', the peacock (the Firebird) also symbolized the Sun. In the West, the peacock was considered a snake killer, and the iridescent colors of its tail were attributed to its ability to turn snake venom into solar substance. Since snakes in Iranian symbolism were considered enemies of the sun, it was believed that the peacock killed snakes, in order to create "eyes" from their saliva, iridescent with a bronze-green and gold-blue color on the feathers of its tail. Due to the bright splendor of the male peacock's tail, it has been compared with immortal gods and, therefore, with immortality. Peacocks are known as an emblem of greatness, royal authority, spiritual superiority, ideal creation.

In the early period of Christianity, the peacock was a symbol of love, resurrection, immortality, beauty, eternity of the soul, the all-seeing eye of the Church, and the peacock feather was the emblem of Saint Barbara. The image of peacocks with snakes in their beaks on the cross is not at all accidental; it symbolizes the victory of Christ over evil.

On the back side of the cross, traces of fixing are preserved, probably of a pin (missing), so the object served as a brooch (fibula), which was probably attached to the fabric. The piece is presumably dated back to the 9th-12th centuries.

The object has the following dimensions: height - 125 mm; width - 86 mm; weight - 47 g.

National Museum of History of Moldova

Publications

Journal „Tyragetia"

vol. VII [XXII], nr. 2

Holy images on blades: unique swords from the State Hermitage Museum (preliminary publication)

ISSN 1857-0240
E-ISSN 2537-6330

Всеволод Образцов, Юрий А. Пятницкий

Holy images on blades: unique swords from the State Hermitage Museum (preliminary publication)

Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VII [XXII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie

The focus of this article are interesting rarities from the collection of the State Hermitage Museum - swords of the 17th-18th centuries with inscriptions in Greek and Slavonic, with images of Christian saints inlaid in gold. The authors offer the general characteristics of 17 exemplars of this kind of arms which are divided into several groups according to the shape of the hilt. A brief overview of the relatively few publications on this subject includes articles by Vasilii Prokhorov (1877); data from the Index of the Medieval Department of the Imperial Hermitage published by Nikodim Kondakov (1891), a catalogue of Count Sergei Sheremetev's collection of arms compiled by Eduard Lenz (1895), and a monograph by E. Astvatsaturian on Turkish arms from the collection of the State Historical Museum (2002). The authors pay special attention to the description and analysis of two swords from the Hermit- age collection. One of them belonged to Count Michail Miloradovich, and was presented to him in 1807 from the city of Bucharest. The second sword came to the Hermitage after the Bolshevik Revolution from the Marble Palace, the residency of the Grand Dukes Konstantinovichi. Besides the traditional inscriptions and images of the Virgin with Child crowned by angels, the blade bears a unique image of Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros Phokas blessed by Jesus Christ with both hands. There are also two cartouches with quotations from Psalms in Greek. The extremely rich décor of this sword and the unique depiction of the Byzantine Emperor leave no doubt that they were made on a special order. The authors connect the sword to the Greek Project initiated by the Russian Empress Catherine the Great. The main idea of the project was a restoration of the Byzantine Empire with Constantinople-Istanbul as its capital, where Grand Duke Konstantin, Catherine the Great's grandchild, would be ascended to the throne.

This article is a preliminary publication of a project in process on compilation of a complete catalogue of all swords with Greek and Slavonic inscriptions and with images on Christian subjects from the collection of the State Hermit- age Museum.

List of illustrations:

Fig. 1. Sword and scabbard, Inv. № VO-5812.

Fig. 2. Sword VO-5812, detail of the hilt.

Fig. 3. Sword VO-5912, detail of the blade with the image of the Virgin and Child, the Greek inscription and the date 1445.

Fig. 4. Sword VO-5812, detail of the blade with the image of Dove - Holy Spirit, the Virgin and Child with angels and crown.

Fig. 5. Sword VO-5812, detail with arabesque on ricasso (side view).

Fig. 6. Sword VO-5812, detail of the blade with the four-pointed cross and traces of the more oldest inlay. Fig. 7. Sword VO-5812, lithography by V.A. Prokhorov, 1877.

Fig. 8. Sword and scabbard, Inv. № VO-3239.

Fig. 9. Sword VO-3239, detail of the blade with Greek inscriptions.

Fig. 10. Sword VO-3239, detail of the blade with Greek inscription from Psalm 34. Fig. 11. Sword VO-3239, detail of inlay on the blade near the hilt.

Fig. 12. Sword VO-3239, detail of cartouche with Greek inscription from Psalm 44.

Fig. 13. Sword VO-3239, detail of second cartouche with Greek inscription from Psalm 44.

Fig. 14. Sword VO-3239, detail of the blade with an image of the Virgin and Child.

Fig. 15. Sword VO-3239, detail: the blade with an image of the Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros Phokas blessed by Jesus Christ.

Fig. 16. Sword VO-3239, detail: the blade with an image of the Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros Phokas.

Fig. 17. Sword VO-3239, detail: the blade with Greek inscription and date beneath an image of the Byzantine Emperor Nikephoros Phokas.