Ketevan the Martyr
Ketevan the Martyr | |
---|---|
Mukhrani | |
Father | Ashotan I, Prince of Mukhrani |
Religion | Georgian Orthodox Church |
Khelrtva |
Ketevan the Martyr (Georgian: ქეთევან წამებული, romanized: ketevan ts'amebuli) (c. 1560 – September 13, 1624) was a queen consort of Kakheti, a kingdom in eastern Georgia. She was regent of Kakheti during the minority of her son Teimuraz I of Kakheti from 1605 to 1614. She was killed at Shiraz, Iran, after prolonged tortures by the Safavid suzerains of Kakheti for refusing to give up the Christian faith and convert to Islam. She has been canonized as a saint by the Georgian Orthodox Church.
Life
Ketevan was born to
After David's death, she engaged in religious building and charity. However, when David's brother
After the uprising she negotiated with Shah
In 1614, sent by Teimuraz as a negotiator to
Portions of her relics were clandestinely taken by the
Sainthood
Queen Ketevan was canonized by Patriarch Zachary of Georgia (1613–1630), and September 13 (corresponding to September 26 in the modern Gregorian calendar) was instituted by the Georgian Orthodox Church as the day of her commemoration.[citation needed]
The account of Ketevan's martyrdom related by the Augustinians missioners was exploited by her son, Teimuraz, in his poem The Book and Passion of Queen Ketevan (წიგნი და წამება ქეთევან დედოფლისა, ts'igni da ts'ameba ketevan dedoplisa; 1625) as well as by the
Relics and archaeological findings
Portugal
In 2008, it was discovered that Graça Convent in Lisbon, Portugal contained a previously unknown, large panoramic azulejo depicting Queen Ketavan's martyrdom in Persia. The scenes were based on accounts of her martyrdom by Portuguese Augustinian missionaries who witnessed her death. Panoramic tilework was in a state of disrepair and Georgia offered thousands of euros for repairs.[7]
In 2017, a full replica of the Portuguese depiction of Ketevan's martyrdom was unveiled in Georgia and displayed at Château Mukhrani.[8]
In October 2017, President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili visited Queen Ketevan's mural at the Graça Convent during his official trip to Portugal. Restoration works continued and an agreement was signed between the convent and the National Agency of Cultural Heritage Preservation of the Ministry of Culture of Georgia.[9]
India (Goa)
The importance of Queen Ketevan for the
These historical sources stated that Ketevan's palm and arm bone fragments were kept inside a stone urn beneath a specific window within the Chapter Chapel of the Augustinian convent. In May 2004, the Chapter Chapel and window mentioned in the sources were found during a collaboration work between
The
In 2017, celebrating twenty-five years of diplomatic relations between India and Georgia, the relics were sent to Georgia for a period of six months during which both religious and scientific events were staged.[13]
The Indian government has offered some parts of the holy relics of Goa to Georgia. On July 9, 2021, the relics were handed over to the Georgian government and to Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia by Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar.[14]
References
- General sources
- Media related to Ketevan the Martyr at Wikimedia Commons
- Lang, David Marshall (1976). Lives and Legends of the Georgian Saints. New York: Crestwood. (Excerpt "The Passion of Queen Ketevan")
- Notes
- ISBN 0-253-20915-3.
- The Iranian. Accessed on October 26, 2007.
- ^ Georgia - Basic facts. Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. February, 2007. Accessed on October 26, 2007.
- ^ It is Confirmed, Relic Found in Goa is of a Georgian Queen. 'The New Indian Express'. December 23, 2013. Accessed on January 7, 2014.
- ISBN 0-7007-1163-5.
- ^ Forsyth, William (1861), The Martydom of Kelavane, p. iii. London: Arthur Hall, Virtue & Co.
- ^ Mártir da Geórgia "vive" escondida no Convento da Graça, Publico, 22 de Setembro de 2008
- ^ Chateau Mukhrani Mural Tells the Story of Queen Ketevan Archived 2019-12-20 at the Wayback Machine, Georgia Today, 26 September 2019
- ^ President of Georgia visited the Convent of Graça, Embassy of Georgia to the Republic of Portugal, 2017
- ^ This archaeological work was featured in an episode of the documentary program "Schliemans's Erben", aired by the German channel ZDF, at 20:00 on March 16, 2008. ([1])
- ^ Niraj Rai et al., Relic excavated in western India is probably of Georgian Queen Ketevan, Mitochondrion, Available online 16 December 2013
- ^ The Traveling Hand - Mint on Sunday
- ^ Monteiro, Lisa (October 18, 2018). "St Ketevan's relics return after Georgia visit". The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-11-06.
- ^ ""Bonds Of Friendship": India Gifts Relic Of 17th Century Queen To Georgia". The Economics Times. Retrieved 9 July 2021.