The Bedia Chalice ( ka, ბედიის თასი, tr) is a piece of the medieval Georgian goldsmithery, a liturgical vessel made of ducat gold and richly decorated. Dated to , the chalice was commissioned by King Bagrat III for the Bedia Monastery in

Abkhazia Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which v ...

. Only the bowl of the vessel is preserved and currently kept at the

Georgian National Museum The Georgian National Museum ( ka, საქართველოს ეროვნული მუზეუმი, tr) unifies several leading museums in Georgia. The museum was established within the framework of structural, institutional, and l ...

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...

History

The chalice was a donation by King Bagrat III and his mother, Queen Gurandukht, to the new church at Bedia, which was completed in 999. The base of the vessel was subsequently lost and restored in the 16th century at the behest of Germane Chkhetidze, Metropolitan Bishop of Bedia, as mentioned in a Georgian inscription. The item was preserved in the sacristy of the Ilori Church, when the historian

Dimitri Bakradze Dimitri Bakradze ( ka, დიმიტრი ბაქრაძე) (26 October 1826 – 10 February 1890) was a Georgian scholar who authored several influential works in the history, archaeology and ethnography of Georgia and the Caucasus. He ...

visited it in 1865 and reported the danger of its being lost. The base then again disappeared. The surviving bowl was removed to Tbilisi, in the Treasure Chamber of the Georgian State Art Museum, now Georgian National Museum, in 1930.

Description

The bowl of the Bedia vessel is 14 cm high and 14 cm in diameter; it weighs 752 g. The piece is made of one sheet of gold, with all figures and details worked in repoussé. The entire outer surface is framed and divided into 12 segments by a continuous arcade. The figures depicted are the enthroned

Christ Pantokrator In Christian iconography, Christ Pantocrator ( grc-gre, Χριστὸς Παντοκράτωρ) is a specific depiction of Christ. ''Pantocrator'' or ''Pantokrator'', literally ''ruler of all'', but usually translated as "Almighty" or "all-po ...

and the

Virgin Hodegetria A Hodegetria , ; russian: Одиги́трия, Odigítria ; Romanian: Hodighitria, or Virgin Hodegetria, is an iconographic depiction of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary) holding the Child Jesus at her side while pointing to him as the source of salv ...

on the opposite side. Between them are standing figures of ten

apostles An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

, five on each side, holding rotuli in their hands. Christ is identified by a Greek inscription and all apostles by the Georgian texts; there is no inscription associated with the Virgin. The Georgian-language inscription, translated as: "Holy Mother of God, intercede before your son for Bagrat, king of the Abkhazians, and his mother, the queen Gurandukht, the commissioners of this vessel, the decorators of this altar, and the builders of this holy church. Amen." just below the rim, in finely carved

asomtavruli The Georgian scripts are the three writing systems used to write the Georgian language: Asomtavruli, Nuskhuri and Mkhedruli. Although the systems differ in appearance, their letters share the same names and alphabetical order and are written hor ...

script, mentions King Bagrat and Queen Gurandukht. The Bedia chalice is notable for the orderly and rhythmic composition and decorative details which are endogenously Georgian, but exhibit some stylistic affinities with the contemporary Byzantine ivory icons and enameled chalices in the Treasury of San Marco, Venice. Yet, robust monumental effect of the artwork of the Bedia chalice is unparalleled.

Notes

References

{{reflist Gold objects Art of Georgia (country) Chalices History of Abkhazia