Armenian tiara

Tigran II the Great in the tiara of the Artashesid

The Armenian tiara ( Armenian Հայկական խույր ) or Tiara Artashesid ( Armenian Արտաշեսյանների խույր ) is a headdress that was a symbol of the monarchical power of the rulers from the Artasheside dynasty in Ancient Armenia , which was a four-piece or four-pointed hat in the form of a four-pointed ornate the top, around which the royal diadem is entwined, decorated with two eagles looking in opposite directions, on both sides of the 8-pointed star, which was a generic sign of the Artashes . ^[1] . The bottom of the tiara was decorated with a hanging occipital ribbon-veil (natalnik) and side ribbons-bedspreads that fell on the shoulders ^[1] .

Images of the tiara of the Artashesheids came to us on numerous ancient Armenian coins on which the monarchs of the Artashesids dynasty from Tigran II the Great to Artavazd II were traditionally depicted with this symbol of power ^[2] .

Content

Origin

Armenian tiara - part of the monument to King of Great Armenia Tigran II the Great

The issue of the origin of the Armenian tiara is not fully understood. The earliest examples of the Armenian tiara are documented on monuments depicting Tigran II.
G. A. Tiratsyan expresses an idea regarding the Achaemenid sources of the Armenian tiara. This connection is indicated by the coins of the Achaemenid kings, carved stones, mainly cylinders, reliefs ( Persepolis , Daskilea ), gold items from the Amu Darya treasure , fabrics from Pazyryk ^[3] . On the mentioned monuments, royal persons wear a crown, the main distinguishing feature of which is its dentate.
However, Tiratsian also cites the differences between the Achaemenid and Armenian tiaras: the Achaemenid jagged tiara is depicted without a head and headphones, it, in addition to the teeth, usually does not have any decorations, while the lateral parts of the Armenian tiara are decorated with symbols of the ancient Armenian god of the sun Mihr (a rosette and two eagles on the sides) ^[3] . Tiratsyan concludes that the Armenian tiara, in the form in which it is depicted on the coins of Tigran II, arose as a result of the merger of the Achaemenid royal tiara in the form of a truncated cone with the Achaemenid satrap headdress that appeared in Armenia, at least from the 5th century BC . rather, his head and headphones ^[3] .

Interesting Facts

The Armenian tiara is depicted on the national emblem of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic , which symbolizes the connection of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic with the aristocratic dynasties of Ancient and Medieval Armenia ^[4] .

External links

Notes

↑ ¹ ² Ter-Nersesyan S.M. Armenia. Life, religion, culture . - M .: Centerpolygraph, 2008 .-- S. 120. - 192 p. - 4000 copies - ISBN 978-5-9524-3803-3 .
↑ Armenians / resp. ed. L. M. Vardanyan, G. G. Sargsyan, A.E. Ter-Sargsyants . - Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology. N. N. Miklouho-Maclay RAS ; Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of NAS RA . - M .: Nauka , 2012 .-- S. 477-484. - 648 p. - 600 copies. - ISBN 978-5-02-037563-5 .
↑ ¹ ² ³ Tiratsyan G.A. Armenian tiara: an experience of cultural-historical interpretation // VDI. 1982. No. 2. Page 90-95.
↑ Crown of the Armenian Kingdom and the Asan-Jalalyan dynasty

[Тер-Нерсесян-1] ¹ ² Ter-Nersesyan S.M. Armenia. Life, religion, culture . - M .: Centerpolygraph, 2008 .-- S. 120. - 192 p. - 4000 copies - ISBN 978-5-9524-3803-3 .

[Варданян-2] Armenians / resp. ed. L. M. Vardanyan, G. G. Sargsyan, A.E. Ter-Sargsyants . - Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology. N. N. Miklouho-Maclay RAS ; Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of NAS RA . - M .: Nauka , 2012 .-- S. 477-484. - 648 p. - 600 copies. - ISBN 978-5-02-037563-5 .

[Тирацян-3] ¹ ² ³ Tiratsyan G.A. Armenian tiara: an experience of cultural-historical interpretation // VDI. 1982. No. 2. Page 90-95.

[4] Crown of the Armenian Kingdom and the Asan-Jalalyan dynasty