ALEXANDER GRIBOYEDOV’S GRAVE IN THE MTATSMINDA PANTHEON AND THE SCULPTURE COMPOSITION CREATED FOR IT

Abstract

When discussing 19th-century Georgian sculpture, all sources agree that the first distinctly European-character example of sculpture in the round in Georgia of that time was the monument at Alexander Griboyedov's grave (created by the Italian-born sculptor Campione and erected in the Mtatsminda Pantheon in 1832). It is true that Ioseb Balakhashvili, in his artistic-documentary work "Griboyedov and Alexander Chavchavadze," questions the date of the grave's decoration, though he too attributes the authorship of the sculpture to Santino Campione, who lived in Russia. Already in several Russian publications from the second half of the 20th century, the mentioned decoration of Griboyedov's grave is referenced among the works of another sculptor, Vasily Demut-Malinovsky. However, the mention is only in a list, which is not accompanied by any substantial research whatsoever.

Clearly, it is important to clarify both the overall history and the sequence of events related to the decoration of Griboyedov's grave, as well as the date and author. The mentioned architectural-sculptural composition is remarkable in 19th-century Georgian art for several reasons, especially if we consider that Georgian sculpture in the round of this period appears unusually novel to the eye accustomed to the centuries-old, plane-oriented formal language of the Middle Ages, and offers Georgian society a new, or rather long-forgotten, version of plastic representation. Therefore, there exists a natural interest in this work in the history of Georgian art and especially in the history of Georgian sculpture.

Archival documentation, as well as information scattered fragmentarily in specialized literature, photographic and graphic materials, and publications printed in local and foreign periodicals, created the opportunity both for the sequential reconstruction of the history of Alexander Griboyedov's grave decoration and for clarifying the identity of the sculpture's author. In the process of this present research, additional information was also found regarding one of the restoration-renovations of Tbilisi's Mamadaviti Church, which preceded the construction of the current cathedral.

Key words:  Sculpture, 19th century Georgian sculpture, Mtatsminda Pantheon, Alexander Griboyedov.