Whose icon?
South Ossetian authorities continuously insist on the return of the unique icon that disappeared from Tskhinval/i during the military phase of the Georgian-Ossetian conflict in the early 90’s, which is now preserved at the Georgian National Museum in Tbilisi.
The topic of discussion is a rare work from the early Byzantine school of icon painting – an 11th century three-fold icon, depicting the Savior and face replicas of the apostles.
It is 2032 cm. high and is made using the ivory carving technique. It is decorated with pearls, gold and silver.
Unlike a few world famous triptychs in this style, this icon has been surprisingly well preserved.
The South Ossetian and Georgian sides disagree on literally each and every fact related to this relic and each side has been proving their right to it for almost 15 years.
The origin of the icon
Arguments from Tskhinval/i
Merab Zoseev, Director of the National Museum of South Ossetia, describes the history of the Okoni triptych as follows:
“As legend has it, in the 12th century, the Byzantine emperor, Alexios, presented this icon as a gift to the Alan Prince, Rosmik. In 1924, it was discovered by chance in a tiny church in the village of Okoni, in the Znaur district of South Ossetia.
The Soviet state had been already established in the Caucasus by that time and soon the icon was seized from the church and handed over to the National Museum of South Ossetia, where it was kept until the 90s, when the war started.”
Arguments from Tbilisi
According to Elene Kavlelashvili, the curator of the Gold Fund of the Georgian Museum of Fine Arts, the first records on the Okoni icon are dated back to the 11th century:
“Queen Elene, the first wife of Bagrat IV, brought it to Georgia from the Byzantine Empire. The Okoni triptych was part of Queen Elene’s dowry.
Bagrat IV built a cathedral specifically for the Okoni icon, but it was later destroyed by a strong earthquake. The cathedral was not restored. A new, relatively smaller one was built in its stead. It was in that very cathedral that Praskovya Uvarova, an explorer, discovered in the 19th century that the icon was decorated with 30 precious stones, bearing an inscription that read: ‘The Icon of Okoni, forgive the sinner Catholicos Yevdemon’.
This inscription is of particular importance, since it directly points to the fact that it is really the Okoni icon before our eyes, and that it was discovered in this very place, as mentioned in historical sources.
Following 1923, as the shrines were being destroyed, the icon was taken from the cathedral to the Tskhinvali museum. That was the only case when the icon was not handed over to the National Fine Arts Museum, but rather to the local museum. It was kept there until 1992.”
How the Okoni triptych disappeared
Tskhinval/i’s version
The Okoni triptych disappeared in 1991. Sergey Chibirov, then an employee of the South Ossetian National Museum, told the story of disappearance of the relic as follows:
“In January 1991, the Georgian militia occupied the part of Tskhinvali where the museum was located. The triptych was at that point in time exhibited in plain view. A few days later, when we finally managed to get into the building, we discovered that this most precious exhibit, as well as several daggers with silver sheaths and some ancient coins, had disappeared.”
Only ten years later was the unique icon found. In the summer of 2001, Oleg Zemlyannikov decided to sell it at Christie’s auction in Geneva. As he recalls, he bought the triptych at a street jumble sale in Vladikavkaz.
This raised the auction administration’s doubts. They invited experts who eventually were able to confirm identity of the unique icon.
Its starting price was set then by Christie’s auction commission at $2 million.
Tbilisi’s version
Elene Kavlelashvili claims:
‘The organizers of the auction carefully investigated the issue. They found that the icon was from Georgia and it was owned by the state, rather than by a private person. The icon was finally confiscated from Zemlyannik and he, himself, was arrested.
From 2001 till 2004, the Arts Museum in a joint effort with the Georgian Foreign Ministry and other governmental agencies were trying to prove that the icon was really owned by Georgia and that it should be returned to the country. It was only after some lengthy procedures that the icon was finally brought from Geneva to Tbilisi in 2004.
Since that time, the triptych has been kept at Tbilisi-based National Museum of Fine Arts.”
So, whose icon is it?
Tskhinval/i’s arguments
After the icon was found, the South Ossetian delegation has been continuously raising the issue of the artifact’s return to Tskhinval/i.
As Murat Dzhioev, the South Ossetian President’s Representative on post-conflict settlement, told JAMnews, the South Ossetian delegation once again raised the cultural heritage issue at another round of Georgia-Russia talks in Geneva, which took place in March this year. One important matter discussed was the Okoni triptych.
Merab Zoseev, Director of the National Museum of South Ossetia:
“This icon is oart of the cultural heritage of South Ossetia. Valueable are, as a rule, returned to their indigenous owners after a war. Today, a new building of the museum, built in line with all of the contemporary standards, can ensure the safety of the shrine, meet the relevant temperature requirements and provide all the conditions needed for this.”
Tbilisi’s arguments:
Elene Kavlelashvili claims:
“The investigation in Switzerland revealed that Zemlyannikov had purchased the icon for $300 US in the Tskhinvali museum. However, they claim, the icon had disappeared before 1992. If that’s true, why did they not report that the icon was missing? And why did they suddenly start lodging claims only in 2012, after the Georgian side had intensified its efforts to bring the Okoni icon back? From 1992 till 2002, Tskhinvali did not make any statements about the icon being either missing or lost.
The icon represents a part of Georgia’s cultural heritage. Switzerland has officially handed it over to Georgia. Any further relocation of the icon to anyone is out of question. It’s unacceptable.“
∗ Photo provided by the Georgian National Museum, 2016
