Proshyan dynasty

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Proshyans
Armenian nobility
Prosh Khaghbakian

The Proshyan dynasty, also Khaghbakians or Xaghbakian-Proshians (

Orbelians.[2] Despite heavy Mongol taxes, they benefited from trade routes to China under the control of the Mongols, and built many magnificent churches and monasteries.[2]

Context

In the mid-11th century, the region of

Kecharuyk witnessed a significant rise in economic and cultural life under the rule of the Khaghbakyan and later the Proshyan noble families, during the 13th and the 14th centuries. After the Mongols captured Ani in 1236, Armenia turned into a Mongol protectorate as part of the Ilkhanate. After the fall of the Ilkhanate in the mid-14th century, the Zakarid princes ruled over Lori, Shirak, Kotayk, and Ararat plain until 1360 when they fell to the invading Turkic tribes of the Timurids and Qara Qoyunlu
.

Main figures

Ancestors

khatchkar cross (1233).[3][4]

Vayots Dzor, Bjni, and Dvin over the Seljuk Eldiguzids.[5][6]

Prosh's uncle

Kipchak Turks.[6]

Together with his wife Zaz, he built the

khatchkar with a sacred image, now in Etchmiadzin Cathedral, where it was brought from Imirzek.[4][3]

The

Khachqar cross dedicated by Grigor Khaghbakian in 1233, now located near Etchmiadzin Cathedral, is considered as one of the finest, with its detailed and refined openwork sculpture. A fine Deesis decorated the entablature, and the donator appears on horse at the bottom, a rare occurrence as such crosses are not often decorated with human depictions. [10][3][4]

Prosh Khaghbakian

Prince Prosh Khaghbakian (sometimes spelled Brosh Xalbakean), also referred to as "Hasan Khaghbakian called "Prosh"" (1223–1283), was also an Armenian Prince in the service of Zakarid Armenia, itself nominally vassal to the Kingdom of Georgia, at a time when Georgia was itself under the control of the Mongols (officially since the 1239 treaty). As a reward for his military successes, the Zakarids granted him the title nakharar, which allowed him to found his own dynasty with his own feudal fief in the service of the Zakarids.[1] The dynasty came to be known as "Proshyan" in his honour.[6] He was a lord of the Khaghabakian or Pŕoshian House in Urkghunk‘, Boloraberd, Eghegiats‘ Dzor and Hrashk‘aberd.[11]

Geghard Monastery, dedicated by Prince Prosh in 1283.[12][13][14]

Following the successful submission of

Hulegu, while Prosh and Sadun Artsruni helped Hulegu and Abaqa Khan.[15]

In 1256, the historical territories of Armenia were directly incorporated into the Mongol

Hulagu, during the Mongol conquest of Middle-East (1258–1260).[17] In 1258, he led Armenian troops to participate to the Mongol Siege of Baghdad, while Zakare III Zakarian was leading the Georgian troops.[11] He was the main source for the account of the fall of Baghdad by the Armenian historian Kirakos.[18] He had a son named Ami Hasan I (died in 1292).[19]

Prosh Khaghbakian was involved in the development of the Geghard medieval monastery in the Kotayk province of Armenia, partially carved out of the adjacent mountain and surrounded by cliffs.[20] He purchased the monastery in the 1240s,[7] and built a series of additional chapels hewn into the rock. The chamber reached from the North East of the gavit and became Prince Prosh Khaghbakian's tomb in 1283. Over a short period the Proshyans built the cave structures which brought Geghard well-merited fame — the second cave church, the family sepulcher of Prosh's son Papak and Ruzukan, a hall for gatherings and studies (collapsed in the middle of the 20th century) and numerous cells.

Eachi and Amir Hassan II

Relief depicting Eachi and Amir Hassan II of the Proshian dynasty ("a portrait identified by scholars as the father and son together"),[21] c. 1321. Astvatsatsin Spitakavor Monastery, Vayots Dzor, Hermitage Museum, inv. No. AR-619.[22][23]

cloud collar).[27] On his reliquary, Eachi Proshyan engraved a colophon
recounting the story of his family:

With the will of almighty God, I, Each‘i, son of Hasan, son of

Shabunik and many other countries with the help and support of Christ and of the Holy Cross of the Vegetarians in which my ancestors too found strength [and] built a tabernacle for it as unerasable memory. You who stand in front of this remember in prayers me and my parents, the Prince Hasan and Tajer, and my father’s brother Papak‘, and all our ancestors and family.

— Colophon of the Holy Cross of the Vegetarians, circa 1300.[28]

Also from the Monastery,

cloud collar).[32]

The Proshyan dynasty continued to rule in

Siunik, the Dopians in Tsar. But their circumstances were difficult, and they receive huge pressure to convert to Islam.[33]

The Melikdom of Kashatagh (1475-1730) was founded at the end of the 15th century by Melik Haykaz I, also the founder of the Melik-Haykazyan dynasty (the youngest branch of the Armenian princely Proshyan dynasty). Previously, the Kashatagh region was first ruled by the Orbelian family, and then by the Shahurnetsi clan.[34]

Sponsorship of monastical institutions and art

Spitakavor Monastery, built in 1321 by the Proshyan family.[35]

The region held by the Proshyans enjoyed relative political stability and prosperity from the end of the 13th century to the early 14th century.

Smbat Orbelian (1249/50-73) had obtained from Möngke Khan that monastic properties which had been seized should be returned, and that they would be free from taxation.[7] This tax-exempt status, contrasting with the generally heavy taxation of private property under the Mongols, encouraged nobility to transfer part of their wealth for safeguarding to monastic institutions, either temporarily or permanently, all of this secured by Mongol edicts.[7] In some cases, members of the nobility could become abbots, so as to secure the ownership and management of these ecclesiastical resources.[7] The main holdings of the Proshyans were in the monasteries of Kecharuyk and Geghard, but they also contributed to the Aghjots Vank and the Tanahat Monastery (1273-1279).[7]

The Proshians were also in strong competition with the

Orbelians, which contributed to stimulating an impressive number of architectural commissions.[36]

Members of the dynasty

  • Haghbak, father of Grigor and Vasak
  • Prosh Khaghbakian (Hasan "Prosh" Khaghbakian, -1283, founder of the dynasty), husband of Khut'lu Khat'un, brother of Papak' and Mkde'm.[6][38]
    • His son Vasak (died 1268–1273).[38]
    • His son Amir Hasan I (ruled 1284-1292), wife T‘acher.[38][39]
    • His son Papak Proshian (died 1288), wife Ruzukan.[38]
    • His son Mkde'm.[6]
  • Eachi Proshian (1268/73-1318), son of Ami Hasan I, grandson of Prosh Khaghbakian.[40]

Genealogy

family tree of Proshyans
Haghbak
AvagGrigor
ProshPapak‘Mkde‘m
VasakAmir Hasan IPapak‘Mkde‘m
Eachi
Amir Hasan II

References

  1. ^
    Proshian clan, who were particularly important for the history of the Gladzor
    Gospels.
  2. ^ a b Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. p. 32. The devastation caused by the Mongols is recorded in the colophons of many manuscripts of the period. Some Armenians, however, prospered as allies of, and soldiers and merchants for, the Mongols, including the Zakarian, Orbelian, and Proshian families. They continued or extended their existing trade routes into China, now controlled by the Mongols. Examples of Proshian success are seen at the church of the White Virgin (Spitakavor Astuatsatsin) with its relief carving of Amir Hasan (cat. 35) and in the exquisite, richly gilded reliquary presented by his father (cat. 36).
  3. ^ a b c Donabédian, Patrick. "Le khatchkar, un art emblématique de la spécificité arménienne". L'Église arménienne entre Grecs et Latins fin XIe – milieu XVe siècle. pp. 8–9, 15 Figure 10. Outre ces figurations, à partir du début du XIIIe siècle, une autre représentation humaine apparaît, soit sous la croix, soit sur le piédestal du khatchkar : l'image du donateur, ou plus exactement du défunt à la mémoire duquel le khatchkar a été érigé. Ce personnage est représenté en tenue d'apparat, armé et à cheval, rappelant le schéma iconographique sassanide de la chasse royale ou princière que l'architecture arménienne pratiquait depuis la période paléochrétienne.
  4. ^
    doi:10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T004089
    . Some khatchk'ars have sacred images on the top frame or beside the cross, and a donor image, such as that at the base of Grigor Khaghbakian's khatchk'ar (1233) on the grounds of Ēdjmiadzin Cathedral, where it was brought from Imirzek'.
  5. ^ Baillie MRes, James (2023). "The Prosopography of High Medieval Georgia: A Digital Approach. Wien University. pp. 103–104.
  6. ^
    ISBN 978-1403964212
    . Another of Ivane's subordinates was Vasak Khaghbakian, originally from the Khachen area, who had helped in the reconquest of Vayots Dzor, Bjni, and Dvin. This family came to be known as Proshian after Vasak's energetic son Prosh (1223-1284).
  7. ^
    ISBN 978-0-88402-183-4
    .
  8. ^ Bedrosian, Robert (1997). "Armenia during the Seljuk and Mongol Periods". The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times, Vol.1 (PDF). New York: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 241–271. The second invasion of the Caucasus took place immediately after the Mongol departure in 1222, and was caused by it. This time the participants were nomadic Kipchak Turks from the plains to the north. In their turn defeated by the Mongols, one sizable body of Kipchaks fled from them in a southward direction. These nomads pillaged and looted from Darband south to Gandzak in Azerbaijan. Atabeg Ivane mustered troops and went against them, but he was defeated, having underestimated their strength. What was worse, many nakharars were captured, then killed or ransomed for huge sums of money. The Kipchaks continued looting and raiding different parts of the Caucasus until 1223, when Ivane, in alliance with other Caucasian peoples, finally defeated them, killing or selling them into slavery. The Kipchak raids, though less serious than the invasions that preceded and succeeded them, nonetheless contributed to the continued unsettled state of affairs initiated by the Mongols, depleted the Armeno-Georgian military of some capable leaders, and undoubtedly weakened the army's morale.
  9. ISBN 978-0-88402-183-4
    .
  10. ^ Nersessian, Vrej (2001). Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. The British Library Board - Getty Museum. p. 110. The absolute peak of formal perfection and technique in the art of the khatchk'ar seems to have been reached from the twelfth to the fourteenth century. The khatchk'ar of Grigor Proshian, dated 1233, is an excellent example of 'openwork' sculpture, and of the varied ornamentation typical of the period. A different motif is carved inside each one of the polygons of the frame and, in three places, there is a bird. Even the ornaments of the two 'leaves' which frame the lower arms of the cross are not the same. But this variety does not spoil the unity of the whole. The Deesis decorates the entablature, and this iconographic theme is more highly developed in the khatchk'ar of Prince Prosh.
  11. ^
    Prince Pŕosh Khaghbakian
    . The Mongols placed considerable trust in these Armenian lords, whose assistance they had received since the 1230s.
  12. ISBN 978-1-7998-9440-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  13. ^ Geghard. p. 8. The inscription carved on the north wall of the church, shows the date of foundation in 1283, and the name of the donator, Prince Prosh.
  14. ^ "Unesco. Geghard Monastery" (PDF). The prosperity of the monastery in the thirteenth century was due to the patronage of the Proshyan prince, who carved out the second cave church in 1283, reached through a rock-cut antechamber which served as their mausoleum. The burials are in a recess behind twin arches, over which two felines on leashes and an eagle with a lamb in its talons, the family's armoured bearings have been sculpted in bold relief.
  15. ^
    Guyuk Khan; Hasan Jalal to Sartakh and to Mongke Khan; Smbat Orbelian to Mongke Khan and Hulegu; and Prosh Zak'arian and Sadun Artsruni
    to Hulegu and Abaqa Khan illustrate effective Mongol-Armenian partnerships.
  16. Bohemond VI
    , Prince of Antioch, to side with the pro-Mongol party. (...) In 1258 Armenian troops from Greater Armenia took part in Hulagu's successful siege of Baghdad.
  17. Pŕosh Khaghbakian
    . The Mongols placed considerable trust in these Armenian lords, whose assistance they had received since the 1230s.
  18. doi:10.1017/S1356186320000267
    . Kirakos provides a detailed description of the fall of Baghdad in his History of the Armenians, started in 1241 and completed in 1265. Chapter eleven along with the subsequent ones are devoted to describing the events of his own day; they are considered the most important part of his work due to the details that they contain. His source was the Armenian Prince Prosh Khaghbakian, a participant and eyewitness of the conquest. Kirakos notes in his History that this Armenian lord told him directly about the events surrounding the invasion of Baghdad.
  19. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. p. 106.
  20. ^ "UNESCO grants Monastery of Geghard status of Enhanced protection". armenpress.am. Retrieved 2018-12-09.
  21. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. p. 104.
  22. ^ a b Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 104–105.
  23. ^ "Hermitage hall 63".
  24. ^ a b Spitakavor Church. Find Armenia. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
  25. ^ a b "Spitakavor Church". Great Yerevan. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  26. ISBN 978-3-89794-126-7
    .
  27. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 106–107. Following the custom of the time, a representation of the commissioner, Each'i Proshian, is engraved at the bottom center of the frame. His hands are upraised in the ancient Christian orant prayer pose, and his clothing recalls Mongolian royal dress.
  28. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. p. 106.
  29. ^ "Bas-relief presenting a hunting scene – HMA".
  30. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. p. 104. Shown mounted and turning back to shoot his arrow at a deer, he wears a tall hat and a wrapped, close-fitting garment, cinched by an ornate belt. This costume, together with Amir's round cheeks and almond-shaped eyes, finds close parallels in other princely portraits from Mongol-era Armenia, and in particular that of his father on the reliquary of the "Holy Cross of Vegetarians" (Khotakerats').
  31. ^
    ISBN 978-0892366392
    . The portrait of the founder as huntsman is an iconographic type common to Islamic art. Amir Hasan's costume, a long tunic drawn in at the waist by a belt decorated with stones, along with a three-pointed cap with two ribbons, is the same as that of the Mongol princes of the fourteenth century. The face itself, with heavy jowls and slightly slanting eves, also recalls that of the Mongols.
  32. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 106–107. Following the custom of the time, a representation of the commissioner, Each'i Proshian, is engraved at the bottom center of the frame. His hands are upraised in the ancient Christian orant prayer pose, and his clothing recalls Mongolian royal dress.
  33. ISBN 978-1403964212
    . The Timurids preserved the Orbelians in Siunik, the Dopians in Tsar, the Proshians in Vayots Dzor and Shahapunik. However, the circumstances of the Armenian lords were far from easy. Most were under constant pressure to convert to Islam. Tovma Metzopetsi as well as foreign travelers described the plight of the remaining lords: "During the first year of his reign [Umar, Timur's grandson], he forcibly made to apostatize three princes of our people who had remained like a tiny cluster of grapes among us...."
  34. ^ Gharagyozian, Armen (1987). "К локализации гавара Кашатаг" [On the localization of the Kashatagh County]. Lraber hasarakakan gitutyunneri (in Russian) (1): 40–45.
  35. ^ Nersessian, Vrej (2001). Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. The British Library Board - Getty Museum. p. 106.
  36. ^ Nersessian, Vrej (2001). Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. The British Library Board - Getty Museum. p. 110. The Proshians and the Orbelians were in fierce political as well as cultural competition, a situation which stimulated an impressive number of architectural commissions.
  37. ^ Bedrosian, Robert. Kirakos Gandzakets'i's History of the Armenians. p. 107, paragraph 320. All this was narrated to us by prince Hasan called Prosh, son of the pious Vasak, son of Haghbak, brother of Papak' and Mkdem, father of Mkdem, Papak', Hasan and Vasak who was an eyewitness to the events and also heard about events with his own ears, [a man] enjoying great honor in the Khan's eyes.
  38. ^
    JSTOR 26187361
    . This is Prosh-Hasan (wife Khut'lu Khat'un) who had died in 1284. The sons of Prosh Hasan were Vasak the junior, Ami Hasan I and Papak', for whom Georg Khubov gives the date 1492. This Vasak Junior had died between the years 1268–1273 and Amir Hasan I had died in 1292,46 while Papak' had passed away in 1298-9
  39. ^ Sirinian, Anna (2010). "I MONGOLI NEI COLOFONI Summary DEI MANOSCRITTI ARMENI" (PDF). Bazmavep Revue d'Etudes Armeniennes: 520.
  40. ^ Nersessian, Vrej (2001). Treasures from the Ark: 1700 Years of Armenian Christian Art. The British Library Board - Getty Museum. p. 116. The historians Kirakos Gandzaketsi and Step'anos Orbelian testify that Prince Eatchi was a member of the Proshian princely family, whose name is first found in the inscription on the church of T'anahat, built during the catholicate of Hakob Klayetsi (1268-87). The date of his birth is put at around 1268 73. The last occurrence of his name is found in another inscription on the church of T'anahat, dated 1339.
  41. ^ Geghard. p. 8. The inscription carved on the north wall of the church, shows the date of foundation In 1283, and the name of the donator, Prince Prosh
  42. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 106–107.
  43. ISBN 9780190269005
    .
  44. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 106–107. Following the custom of the time, a representation of the commissioner, Each'i Proshian, is engraved at the bottom center of the frame. His hands are upraised in the ancient Christian orant prayer pose, and his clothing recalls Mongolian royal dress.
  45. ^ Armenia: Art, Religion, and Trade in the Middle Ages - MetPublications - The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2018. pp. 104–105.
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