DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.43337#0367
364 I THE WALL PAINTINGS OF AKHTALA MONASTERY
29 Shchepkina M.V. Miniatures of Khlu-
dov’s psalm-book. Moscow, 1977, f. 79,
f. 100 v. - In Russian, see Bibliography.
30 See Lazarev, History, pl. 419.
31 Ibid., pl. 458.
32 Detailed descriptions and images of
the High Priest Aaron are found in the
oldest manuscript copies of the «Chris-
tian Topography» by Cosmas Indico-
pleustes, which may have been one of
the basic sources for medieval painters.
See Redin E.K. Christian Topography of
Cosmas Indicopleustes according to
the Greek and Russian registers. Part I.
Moscow, 1916, pp. 294-297. - In Rus-
sian, see Bibliography.
been the subject of separate study. Nevertheless the main trend in its
evolution is clear. In early depictions it was expressed by a simple com-
parison between the images of the Mother of God and the church, as in
the miniatures of the 9th-century Chludov Psalter29. Between the 11th
and 13th centuries the interpretation became more refined and less lit-
eral. The Akhtala frescoes are not the only 13th-century painting where
the throne of the Mother of God is likened to a church building. A vivid
example may be found in the miniature from a Psalter in the Public Li-
brary in Leningrad (gr. 269, f. 4)30. There an arch seems to grow from
the back of the throne to culminate in the cupola of a church. An Ital-
ian icon in Washington shows a throne in the form of a many-tiered
building that recalls a semi-circular altar apse31. The surviving examples
permit us to conclude that it was actually in the 13th century that the
«Throne-Church» motif became widespread. It was a time when icono-
graphic interpretations were becoming more complex and there was an
increasing interest in subjects associated with the Mother of God in the
liturgical context. By stressing the link between the Virgin and the theme
of the Church the author of the Akhtala composition was demonstrating
knowledge of the latest tendencies in Byzantine iconography.
The garments of the Virgin also reflect this theme, with its emphasis on
significant liturgical elements. Two parallel bands of golden colour dec-
orate the edge of her maphorion and between them are depicted crosses.
The cuffs (epimanikia) of her chiton are similarly adorned. This tradition-
al motif for Byzantine liturgical garments became widespread after the
Iconoclast epoch and was frequently met in depictions of epitrachelions
and deacons’ orarion. The symbolic meaning is
easily understood: the parallel lines refer to the
two natures of Christ and the crosses, to his sac-
rificial redemption of mankind.
Probably another element in the garments
of the Mother of God is also of liturgical signif-
icance. The edge of her maphorion is decorated
with pendants spaced at regular intervals. Such
appendages were sometimes depicted on the
lower hem of Byzantine stoles (omophorions
and epitrachelions). An early example is the
Holy Bishops of St Sophia in Constantinople;
similar tassels may also be found in the gar-
29 Shchepkina M.V. Miniatures of Khlu-
dov’s psalm-book. Moscow, 1977, f. 79,
f. 100 v. - In Russian, see Bibliography.
30 See Lazarev, History, pl. 419.
31 Ibid., pl. 458.
32 Detailed descriptions and images of
the High Priest Aaron are found in the
oldest manuscript copies of the «Chris-
tian Topography» by Cosmas Indico-
pleustes, which may have been one of
the basic sources for medieval painters.
See Redin E.K. Christian Topography of
Cosmas Indicopleustes according to
the Greek and Russian registers. Part I.
Moscow, 1916, pp. 294-297. - In Rus-
sian, see Bibliography.
been the subject of separate study. Nevertheless the main trend in its
evolution is clear. In early depictions it was expressed by a simple com-
parison between the images of the Mother of God and the church, as in
the miniatures of the 9th-century Chludov Psalter29. Between the 11th
and 13th centuries the interpretation became more refined and less lit-
eral. The Akhtala frescoes are not the only 13th-century painting where
the throne of the Mother of God is likened to a church building. A vivid
example may be found in the miniature from a Psalter in the Public Li-
brary in Leningrad (gr. 269, f. 4)30. There an arch seems to grow from
the back of the throne to culminate in the cupola of a church. An Ital-
ian icon in Washington shows a throne in the form of a many-tiered
building that recalls a semi-circular altar apse31. The surviving examples
permit us to conclude that it was actually in the 13th century that the
«Throne-Church» motif became widespread. It was a time when icono-
graphic interpretations were becoming more complex and there was an
increasing interest in subjects associated with the Mother of God in the
liturgical context. By stressing the link between the Virgin and the theme
of the Church the author of the Akhtala composition was demonstrating
knowledge of the latest tendencies in Byzantine iconography.
The garments of the Virgin also reflect this theme, with its emphasis on
significant liturgical elements. Two parallel bands of golden colour dec-
orate the edge of her maphorion and between them are depicted crosses.
The cuffs (epimanikia) of her chiton are similarly adorned. This tradition-
al motif for Byzantine liturgical garments became widespread after the
Iconoclast epoch and was frequently met in depictions of epitrachelions
and deacons’ orarion. The symbolic meaning is
easily understood: the parallel lines refer to the
two natures of Christ and the crosses, to his sac-
rificial redemption of mankind.
Probably another element in the garments
of the Mother of God is also of liturgical signif-
icance. The edge of her maphorion is decorated
with pendants spaced at regular intervals. Such
appendages were sometimes depicted on the
lower hem of Byzantine stoles (omophorions
and epitrachelions). An early example is the
Holy Bishops of St Sophia in Constantinople;
similar tassels may also be found in the gar-