DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.43337#0443
440 | THE WALL PAINTINGS OF AKHTALA MONASTERY
a mystical reality. The entire iconographic programme amounts to
a comparatively free commentary on the text of the liturgy and would
only acquires its full meaning during the act of worship, when each
image would enrich every moment of the liturgy.
The theme of the «Mother of God as the Church» is extremely im-
portant in the overall conception of the Akhtala frescoes. It was directly
linked with the dedication of the church and was particularly vividly
expressed in the composition of the conch, in the Mariological cycle of
the north wall and in the «Nativity of Christ». Emphasis was laid on the
idea that the Virgin was the timeless ideal church, which united the Old
and New Testaments. The history of the liturgy was disclosed through
Her image. It is in this context that the theme arises of «Christ the High
Priest» who inherited the Old Testament priesthood and founded the
church of the new faith. This theme is especially stressed in the Deesis
compositions, the «Communion of the Apostles» and scenes from the
Christological cycle in which the history of salvation is shown as a sa-
cred mystery. All the 11th- and 12th-century Byzantine art was typified
by its interest in this theme. It became particularly intense, however,
after the Constantinople church synod of 1156-57 which gave a compre-
hensive interpretation of Christ’s role in the liturgy. The iconographic
motifs of the Akhtala murals demand a frequent reference to the prob-
lems discussed at that synod, the substance of which was evidently very
familiar to the authors of the iconographic programme.
The Akhtala murals were devised by subtle theologians who were mas-
ters of their vocation. The donor of the paintings probably also participat-
ed in the creation of the programme. His influence can been noted in the
choice of the holy bishops and the inscriptions over the synthronon in the
altar apse, and also in the original interpretation given to «Joshua before
the Archangel Michael» in the south-west compartment’s decoration.
The most important individual distinguishing features of the Akhta-
la murals can be explained by the church’s allegiance to the Arme-
nian-Chalcedonian culture. The consistent orientation towards Byzan-
tine models is one such trait. It was determined by the unusual status
of the Armenian-Chalcedonian church which
197 On the confessional character of
Georgian epigraphy in Armenian Chal-
cedonian monasteries, see Muradian,
Georgian Epigraphy, pp. 284-286.
strove to emphasise both its ancient and direct
links with the patriarchate of Constantinople
and its autonomy within the framework of
the Georgian Catholicosate. In certain icono-
a mystical reality. The entire iconographic programme amounts to
a comparatively free commentary on the text of the liturgy and would
only acquires its full meaning during the act of worship, when each
image would enrich every moment of the liturgy.
The theme of the «Mother of God as the Church» is extremely im-
portant in the overall conception of the Akhtala frescoes. It was directly
linked with the dedication of the church and was particularly vividly
expressed in the composition of the conch, in the Mariological cycle of
the north wall and in the «Nativity of Christ». Emphasis was laid on the
idea that the Virgin was the timeless ideal church, which united the Old
and New Testaments. The history of the liturgy was disclosed through
Her image. It is in this context that the theme arises of «Christ the High
Priest» who inherited the Old Testament priesthood and founded the
church of the new faith. This theme is especially stressed in the Deesis
compositions, the «Communion of the Apostles» and scenes from the
Christological cycle in which the history of salvation is shown as a sa-
cred mystery. All the 11th- and 12th-century Byzantine art was typified
by its interest in this theme. It became particularly intense, however,
after the Constantinople church synod of 1156-57 which gave a compre-
hensive interpretation of Christ’s role in the liturgy. The iconographic
motifs of the Akhtala murals demand a frequent reference to the prob-
lems discussed at that synod, the substance of which was evidently very
familiar to the authors of the iconographic programme.
The Akhtala murals were devised by subtle theologians who were mas-
ters of their vocation. The donor of the paintings probably also participat-
ed in the creation of the programme. His influence can been noted in the
choice of the holy bishops and the inscriptions over the synthronon in the
altar apse, and also in the original interpretation given to «Joshua before
the Archangel Michael» in the south-west compartment’s decoration.
The most important individual distinguishing features of the Akhta-
la murals can be explained by the church’s allegiance to the Arme-
nian-Chalcedonian culture. The consistent orientation towards Byzan-
tine models is one such trait. It was determined by the unusual status
of the Armenian-Chalcedonian church which
197 On the confessional character of
Georgian epigraphy in Armenian Chal-
cedonian monasteries, see Muradian,
Georgian Epigraphy, pp. 284-286.
strove to emphasise both its ancient and direct
links with the patriarchate of Constantinople
and its autonomy within the framework of
the Georgian Catholicosate. In certain icono-