Where are the Arab weapons in the Armory from? Alternative historians explain mysterious Islamic inscriptions.
Ayat from the Koran on the helmet of Alexander Nevsky (internal). Did you know about this?
To understand how typical weapons with Arabic inscriptions are for the Armory Chamber collection, let us turn to the inventory of the Moscow Kremlin Armory Chamber, compiled in 1862 by assistant director of the Armory Chamber Lukian Yakovlev. This rare document exists only in a calligraphic manuscript and is stored in the archives of the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin.
...Therefore, the collection of sabers from the Armory within the framework of traditional history looks unnatural. It requires special explanation.
Based on traditional history, it is logical to assume that a crusader will write a motto in Latin on his shield, a Muslim will write verses from the Koran, and a Russian warrior will use at least his native language. Instead, we see the dominance of so-called “eastern” weapons in Rus' with religious inscriptions written almost exclusively in Arabic. As a rule, these are verses from the Koran and appeals to Allah.
Moreoverwe are NOT talking about captured weapons. Sabers with Arabic inscriptions in Rus' were bought and made in the Armory by Russian craftsmen.
...Half of the “Jericho caps,” which are an important part of the ceremonial military attire of the Russian Tsar, have religious Arabic inscriptions. It is striking that languages other than Arabic are not used.
There is even an example of a paradoxical, from the point of view of traditional history, juxtaposition of seemingly completely alien religious symbols on the “caps of Jericho” of the Russian tsars. So, for example, on the “cap of Jericho” by Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the work of the master of the Armory Chamber Nikita Davydov in 1621, the Arabic Koranic inscription is placed in the stamps: “Give joy to the faithful with the promise of God’s help and speedy victory.” This inscription is adjacent to eight-pointed Orthodox crosses on the helmet itself and with the image of the Archangel Michael on the arrow of the helmet.
Another example. On the mirrors of the royal armor of the first Romanovs, stored in the Moscow Armory, only the titles of Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich are written in Cyrillic in Russian. The religious inscriptions on the mirrors are written entirely in Arabic.
In general, the following picture can be traced, striking from the point of view of the version of Russian history instilled in us, the picture. Inscriptions are usually present on traditional Russian princely weapons - a saber, mirrored damask armor and the Jericho cap - which was part of the “great outfit” of the Russian tsars.
...Moreover, only Arabic inscriptions, as a rule, contain religious formulas on Russian weapons. Perhaps the only exception is a bilingual “Turkish” saber of the 16th century from the collection of the Moscow Armory Chamber, on which religious inscriptions are made in both Arabic and Russian.
On the heel of this saber is written in Arabic: “In the name of God, the good and merciful!”, “O conqueror! O protector! Along the butt of the same saber there is an inscription in Cyrillic, also of religious content: “Judge, Lord, those who offend me. Overcome the struggling me. Take your weapon and shield and rise to help.”
Such widespread use of Arabic on old Russian weapons, mainly for religious formulas, suggests that Arabic could have been one of the sacred languages of the Russian Orthodox Church until the 17th century. Other evidence of the use of Arabic in the Russian Orthodox Church of the pre-Romanov era has also been preserved.
For example, a precious miter is the headdress of an Orthodox bishop, which is still kept in the museum of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Her photograph is shown in L. M. Spirina’s album “Treasures of the Sergiev Posad State Historical and Art Museum-Reserve. Old Russian Applied Art" (GIPP "Nizhpoligraf", Nizhny Novgorod, year of publication not specified). On the front of the miter, directly above the Orthodox cross, is a precious stone with an Arabic inscription.
The abundance of Arabic religious inscriptions on items included in the Great Dress of the Russian Tsars, that is, their ceremonial military armor, and the almost complete absence of any inscriptions on other types of weapons (with the exception of the manufacturer's marks on swords and German swords) also serves as an indirect evidence in favor of the use of Arabic in Rus' as the old language of traditional rituals and the old church language.
Fragment of the helmet of Ivan the Terrible. Above the name of the king in Cyrillic there is an Arabic “pattern”. This is the inscription “Allah Muhammad”, it is made seven times around the circumference of the helmet.
Interesting fact.
The name of Alexander Nevsky is known to everyone. His activities occurred during one of the most difficult periods in the history of the ancient Russian state.
The lives of great people have always been surrounded by secrets. There were many legends around the name of Alexander Nevsky - some even considered him the son of Khan Batu. History carefully preserves everything connected with the name of the great commander.
The Moscow Kremlin Museum houses Alexander Nevsky helmet with Arabic inscriptions. A verse from the Koran (61:13) is carved on it in Arabic script. On the surface of the helmet, the image of a royal crown with an eight-pointed Orthodox cross, applied with a gold notch, is clearly visible. On the nose arrow of the helmet there is an enamel image of the Archangel Michael.
And around the tip of the helmet there is an ARABESQUE BELT. That is, ARAB sayings, enclosed in frames. On the arabesque, in canonical Arabic script, is the inscription “Wa bashshir al-muminin” - “And bring joy to the believers.” This is a frequently found expression from the Koran.
Where did the Muslim script come from on Alexander Nevsky’s helmet, why did an eagle appear on the seal of Ivan III, did Ivan the Terrible kill his son? The history of Russian monarchs is full of mysteries.
Who was Rurik?
Historians have never come to a consensus about who Rurik was. According to some sources, he could be the Danish Viking Rorik of Jutland, according to others, the Swede Eirik Emundarson, who raided the lands of the Balts.
There is also a Slavic version of the origin of Rurik.
The 19th century historian Stapan Gedeonov associated the prince’s name with the word “Rerek” (or “Rarog”), which in the Slavic tribe of Obodrits meant falcon. During excavations of early settlements of the Rurik dynasty, many images of this bird were found.
Did Svyatopolk kill Boris and Gleb?
One of the main “anti-heroes” of the history of Ancient Rus' was Svyatopolk the Accursed. He is considered to be the murderer of the noble princes Boris and Gleb in 1015. Folk etymology connects the nickname of Svyatopolk with the name of Cain, although this word goes back to the Old Russian “kayati” - to repent.
Despite the accusation of murdering princes, the name of Svyatopolk was not removed from the family list of princely names until the middle of the 12th century.
Some historians, for example, Nikolai Ilyin, believe that Svyatopolk could not kill Boris and Gleb, since they recognized his right to the throne. In his opinion, the young princes fell victim at the hands of the soldiers of Yaroslav the Wise, who laid claim to the Kiev throne. For this reason, the name of Svyatopolk was not removed from the family list of names.
Where did the remains of Yaroslav the Wise disappear?
Yaroslav the Wise, son of Vladimir the Baptist, was buried on February 20, 1054 in Kyiv in the marble tomb of St. Clement. In 1936, the sarcophagus was opened and they were surprised to find several mixed remains: a man, a woman and several bones of a child.
In 1939, they were sent to Leningrad, where scientists from the Institute of Anthropology established that one of the three skeletons belonged to Yaroslav the Wise.
However, it remained a mystery who owned the other remains and how they got there. According to one version, Yaroslav’s only wife, the Scandinavian princess Ingegerde, rested in the tomb. But who was Yaroslav’s child buried with him? With the advent of DNA technology, the question of opening the tomb arose again.
The relics of Yaroslav, the oldest surviving remains of the Rurik family, were supposed to “answer” several questions. The main one is: are the Rurik family Scandinavians or Slavs?
On September 10, 2009, looking at the pale anthropologist Sergei Szegeda, the staff of the St. Sophia Cathedral Museum realized that things were bad. The remains of Grand Duke Yaroslav the Wise disappeared, and in their place lay a completely different skeleton and the newspaper “Pravda” for 1964.
The mystery of the newspaper's appearance was quickly solved. It was forgotten by Soviet specialists, the last ones who worked with the bones.
But with “self-proclaimed” relics the situation was more complicated. It turned out that these were female remains, and from two skeletons dating back to completely different times! Who these women are, how their remains ended up in the sarcophagus, and where Yaroslav himself disappeared remains a mystery.
Where does the Muslim script on Alexander Nevsky's helmet come from?
On the helmet of Alexander Nevsky, in addition to diamonds and rubies, there is Arabic script, the 3rd verse of the 61st sura of the Koran: “Give joy to the faithful with the promise of help from Allah and speedy victory.”
During the course of countless checks and examinations, it was established that the “Jericho Cap” was forged in the East (where the Arabic inscriptions come from) in the 17th century.
Then, by chance, the helmet ended up with Mikhail Fedorovich, where it underwent “Christian tuning.” The helmet was mistakenly attributed to Nevsky, but because of this mistake it was on the coat of arms of the Russian Empire along with other royal “hats”.
It is interesting that Arabic script also decorated the helmet of Ivan the Terrible, as well as other noble persons of medieval Rus'. Of course, we can say that these were trophies. But it is difficult to imagine that the regulated Ivan IV would place a used helmet on his crowned head. Moreover, it is used by the “infidel”. The question of why the noble prince wore a helmet with Islamic inscriptions still remains open.
Why did an eagle appear on the seal of Ivan III?
The double-headed eagle in Russia first appeared on the state seal of Grand Duke Ivan III in 1497. Historians almost categorically assert that the eagle appeared in Rus' with the light hand of Sophia Paleologus, the niece of the last Byzantine emperor and the wife of Ivan III.
But no one explains why the Grand Duke decided to use the eagle only two decades later.
It is interesting that it was at the same time in Western Europe that the double-headed eagle became fashionable among alchemists. Authors of alchemical works put the eagle on their books as a sign of quality. The double-headed eagle meant that the author had received the Philosopher's Stone, which could turn metals into gold. The fact that Ivan III gathered around him foreign architects, engineers, and doctors, who probably practiced then fashionable alchemy, indirectly proves that the tsar had an idea of the essence of the “feathered” symbol.
Did Ivan the Terrible kill his son?
The murder of his heir by Ivan Vasilyevich is a highly controversial fact. So, in 1963, the tombs of Ivan the Terrible and his son were opened in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. Research has made it possible to claim that Tsarevich John was poisoned. The poison content in his remains is many times higher than the permissible limit. Interestingly, the same poison was found in the bones of Ivan Vasilyevich.
Scientists have concluded that the royal family was the victim of poisoners for several decades.
Ivan the Terrible did not kill his son. This version was adhered to, for example, by the Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod, Konstantin Pobedonostsev. Seeing Repin’s famous painting at the exhibition, he was outraged and wrote to Emperor Alexander III: “The painting cannot be called historical, since this moment... is purely fantastic.”
The version of the murder was based on the stories of the papal legate Antonio Possevino, who can hardly be called a disinterested person.
Why did Ivan the Terrible move to Alexandrovskaya Sloboda?
Grozny's move to Aleksandrovskaya Sloboda was an unprecedented event in Russian history. In fact, for almost 20 years Alexandrovskaya Sloboda became the capital of Russia. Here Ivan the Terrible began to establish international relations for the first time after centuries of isolation, conclude important trade and political agreements, and receive embassies of European powers.
Grozny moved there the first printing house in Russia, where the students of pioneer printer Ivan Fedorov Andronik Timofeev and Nikifor Tarasiev worked, who printed many books and even the first leaflets there.
Following the sovereign, the best architects, icon painters, and musicians came to Alexandrovskaya Sloboda. A book-writing workshop operated at the court, and the prototype of the first conservatory was created.
Tsarist diplomats were ordered to explain to foreigners that the Russian Tsar left for the “village” of his own free will “for his own coolness,” that his residence in the “village” is located near Moscow, therefore the Tsar “rules his state both in Moscow and in Sloboda.”
Why did Grozny decide to move? Most likely, the monastic brotherhood in Sloboda was formed in the wake of the conflict between Ivan IV and Metropolitan Philip. The head of the church exposed the king's unrighteous life. The presence of a monastic brotherhood in Sloboda showed everyone with their own eyes that the sovereign was leading the life of a saint. Ivan the Terrible did not flirt much with his brotherhood. In 1570-1571, some brothers were stabbed to death or hanged on the gates of their own houses, others were drowned or thrown into prison.
Where did Ivan the Terrible's library go?
According to legend, after his move to Alexandrovskaya Sloboda, Ivan the Terrible took the library with him. Another hypothesis says that John hid it in some reliable Kremlin hiding place. But be that as it may, after the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the library disappeared.
There are many versions of the loss. First: priceless manuscripts burned in one of the Moscow fires. Second: during the occupation of Moscow, the “liberea” was taken to the West by the Poles and sold there in parts.
According to the third version, the Poles actually found the library, but in conditions of famine, they ate it there in the Kremlin.
They searched for the library for a long time, but in vain. Searches for “liberea” were also carried out in the 20th century. However, academician Dmitry Likhachev said that the legendary library is unlikely to be of great value.
Why did Ivan the Terrible abdicate the throne?
In 1575, Ivan the Terrible abdicated the throne and placed the serving Tatar khan Simeon Bekbulatovich on the throne. Contemporaries did not understand the meaning of the monarch’s undertaking. A rumor spread that the sovereign was frightened by the predictions of the magicians. The news of this was preserved by one of the later chroniclers: “And the Netsy say that he imprisoned (Simeon) for this reason, that the wise men told him that in that year there would be a change: the Tsar of Moscow would die.”
The autocrat received warnings of this kind from sorcerers and astrologers more than once.
Ivan began to call himself “serf Ivashka.” But it is significant that for some reason the power of the “serf” continued to extend to the lands of the former Kazan Khanate, where Ivan retained the title of tsar.
Most likely, Ivan was afraid that, having found himself under the rule of a real Genghisid, the Kazan people would perhaps perk up and encourage Simeon to revolt. Of course, Simeon was not a real king; the uncertainty of his position was aggravated by the fact that he took the royal throne, but received only the title of grand duke instead of the royal one.
In the third month of Simeon’s reign, the Terrible told the English ambassador that he could again take the rank whenever he pleased, and would act as God instructed him, because Simeon had not yet been approved by the wedding ceremony and was appointed not by popular election, but only by his permission.
Simeon's reign lasted 11 months, after which Ivan deposed him and generously rewarded him with Tver and Torzhok, where Simeon died in 1616, having taken monasticism before his death. For almost a year, Grozny carried out his strange experiment.
Was False Dmitry a “false”
We have already accepted that False Dmitry I is the fugitive monk Grishka Otrepiev. The idea that “it was easier to save than to fake Demetrius” was expressed by the famous Russian historian Nikolai Kostomarov.
And indeed, it looks very surreal that at first Dmitry (with the prefix “false”) was recognized in front of all the honest people by his own mother, princes, boyars, and after some time - everyone suddenly saw the light.
The pathological nature of the situation is added by the fact that the prince himself was completely convinced of his naturalness, as his contemporaries wrote about.
Either this is schizophrenia, or he had reasons. It is not possible, at least today, to check the “originality” of Tsar Dmitry Ivanovich.
Who killed Tsarevich Dmitry?
If Dmitry did die, what caused his death? At noon on May 25, 1591, the prince was throwing knives with other children who were part of his retinue. In the materials of the investigation into the death of the son of Ivan the Terrible, there is evidence of one youth who played with the prince: “... the prince was playing poke with a knife with them in the backyard, and an illness came upon him - an epileptic illness - and attacked the knife.”
In fact, this testimony became the main argument for investigators to classify Dmitry Ioannovich’s death as an accident.
However, the official version still does not suit historians. The death of the last sovereign from the Rurik dynasty opened the way to the kingdom of Boris Godunov, who was actually the ruler of the country even when Fyodor Ioannovich was alive. By that time, Godunov had gained a popular reputation as the “killer of the prince,” but this did not bother him much. Through cunning manipulations, he was nevertheless elected king
Was Peter I replaced?
Many Russian boyars were of this conviction after the return of Peter I from a 15-month tour of Europe. And the point here was not only in the new royal “outfit”.
Particularly attentive persons found inconsistencies of a physiological nature: firstly, the king had grown significantly, and, secondly, his facial features had changed, and, thirdly, the size of his legs had become much smaller.
Rumors spread throughout Muscovy about the replacement of the sovereign.
According to one version, Peter was “put into the wall,” and instead of him, an impostor with a similar face was sent to Rus'. According to another, “the Germans put the Tsar in a barrel and sent it to sea.” Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that Peter, who returned from Europe, began a large-scale destruction of “ancient Russian antiquity.”
There were also rumors that the Tsar had been replaced in infancy: “The Tsar is not of Russian breed, and not the son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich; taken in infancy from a German settlement, from a foreigner on exchange. The queen gave birth to a princess, and instead of the princess they took him, the sovereign, and gave the princess instead of him.”
To whom did Peter I bequeath power?
Peter I died before he could appoint an heir. After him, Catherine I took the throne, and then a long political leapfrog followed, called the Age of Palace Coups. In 1812, after the collapse of the Napoleonic invasion, a certain “Testament of Peter I” became known.
In 1836 it was published, albeit in French. In his will, Peter allegedly called on his successors to wage constant wars with Europe, divide Poland, conquer India and neutralize Turkey. In general, to achieve complete and final hegemony in Eurasia.
The credibility of the document was given by some of the “testaments” that had already been fulfilled, for example, the division of Poland. But, at the end of the 19th century, the document was carefully studied and found to be fake.
Who was Paul I?
Emperor Paul I unwittingly continued the tradition of generating rumors around the House of Romanov. Immediately after the birth of the heir, rumors spread throughout the court, and then throughout Russia, that the real father of Paul I was not Peter III, but the first favorite of Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna, Count Sergei Vasilyevich Saltykov.
This was indirectly confirmed by Catherine II, who in her memoirs recalled how Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, so that the dynasty would not fade away, ordered the wife of her heir to give birth to a child, regardless of who his genetic father would be. There is also a folk legend about the birth of Paul I: according to it, Catherine gave birth to a dead child from Peter, and he was replaced by a certain “Chukhon” boy.
When did Alexander I die?
There is a legend that Alexander the First left the royal throne, faking his own death, and went to wander around Rus' under the name of Fyodor Kuzmich. There are several indirect confirmations of this legend.
Thus, witnesses concluded that on his deathbed Alexander was categorically unlike himself.
In addition, for unclear reasons, Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna, the Tsar's wife, did not participate in the funeral ceremony.
The famous Russian lawyer Anatoly Koni conducted a thorough comparative study of the handwriting of the emperor and Fyodor Kuzmich and came to the conclusion that “the letters of the emperor and the notes of the wanderer were written by the hand of the same person.”
Jericho cap
The appearance of the helmet is very remarkable. It is forged from red iron and covered with floral gold ornaments. There are 95 diamonds, 228 rubies and 10 emeralds placed on it, and crowns with crosses are incised in gold on three sides. Above the front flap that protects the nose is an image of the Archangel Michael.
The Arabic inscription represents the 13th verse of the 61st sura of the Koran and is translated as follows: ““Give joy to the faithful with the promise of help from Allah and speedy victory.” Even without a thorough examination, it is noticeable that Christian images on the helmet appeared later than this inscription - some of them slightly are placed on top of it.
In the surviving inventory of the royal armory treasury from 1687, the helmet is called the “Jericho hat” with the note “Mikitin of Davydov’s affairs.” That is, the creator of the headdress is the master Nikita Davydov, who worked in the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin from 1613 to 1664. Other historical documents note that the helmet was presented as a gift to Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, the first of the Romanov dynasty, and the date of this event is mentioned - 1621.
But why is Alexander Nevsky, who lived much earlier, in the 13th century, called the owner of the headdress?
Death of the Grand Duke
Historians of the Russian Empire referred to a legend according to which the Jericho hat of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich was reforged from the helmet of the holy Grand Duke.
In 1262, uprisings against Tatar-Mongol rule began in the Russian cities of Vladimir, Suzdal, Rostov and Yaroslavl, during which Horde tribute farmers were killed. At the same time, Khan Berke, who was preparing to fight Iran, announced military recruitment among the residents of Russia. Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich, having transferred power to his sons, went to the khan to settle both of the most important political issues.
His visit lasted almost a year. The prince managed to persuade the khan not to destroy the rebellious cities and to refuse to call up Russian soldiers. But while in the Horde, Alexander Yaroslavich fell ill (according to some sources, he was poisoned). On the way back, he reached Gorodets Volzhsky (or Meshchersky) not far from Nizhny Novgorod, and there he died in the Fedorovsky Monastery in the fall of 1263, having adopted the schema under the name Alexy before his death. His body was transported and buried in the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Vladimir (in 1724, the relics of the holy prince were reburied in St. Petersburg by order of Peter I).
Further, there is some inconsistency in the legend - because, according to legend, the helmet of the Grand Duke was transported to Moscow and later ended up in the Armory. Although Moscow only 100 years after the death of Alexander Nevsky became the center of the Russian state, and the Armory Chamber was first mentioned in documents as the Armory Order in general only in 1547!
Where the Grand Duke's helmet was all this time is unknown. But this legend was actively supported by representatives of the royal house of the Romanovs. This was done for two reasons at once: firstly, the headdress of Alexander Yaroslavich, remade for Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, symbolized the continuity of two dynasties - the Rurikovichs and the Romanovs. And secondly, the thing, which once belonged to Alexander Nevsky, who was canonized in 1547 and became a saint, in the eyes of the people, undoubtedly left an imprint of holiness on its subsequent owners.
Artist on the order
No documents have been preserved about the fate of Prince Alexander Yaroslavich’s belongings. Russian historians for a long time adhered to the version that the helmet could have been kept in the Fedorovsky Monastery - since in Rus', when accepting the schema, all personal property had to be given to the temple - and several centuries later it was transferred to the Armory Order.
Until the mid-19th century, it was believed that the helmet was forged in the Golden Horde, and the Arabic inscription was explained by the close ties of Alexander Nevsky with its rulers. Once upon a time, his father, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, gave his young son to be raised by Batu Khan - this was one of the conditions for Yaroslav’s approval for the great reign. Alexander grew up in a khan's family and even became blood brothers with Sartak, the son of Batu, so he undoubtedly knew the meaning of the Arabic inscription.
The assertion that the Jericho cap once belonged to the holy prince seemed indisputable, and its image appeared not only on the large coat of arms of the Russian Empire, but also on the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky established in 1725. The badge of the award was a cross, in the center of which there was a round medallion with an image of a prince on a horse. The figure was very small, which is why the facial features were undeveloped, but the helmet turned out to be very recognizable.
After the October Revolution, this award was abolished, but in 1942 it was re-established to reward senior command personnel. The sketch was developed by artist Ivan Telyatnikov. Since no lifetime images of Alexander Nevsky survived, he recreated on the order the image created by the artist Nikolai Cherkasov in the film “Alexander Nevsky” released in 1938 by director Sergei Eisenstein. Accordingly, the helmet of the Grand Duke became different, the same as in the movie - with a large forehead icon and without an Islamic inscription.
Arabic as a second church language?
In the middle of the 19th century, historians came to a unanimous conclusion - the Jericho hat of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich is not the headdress of Alexander Nevsky and was created in the 17th century (already in Soviet times this fact was confirmed by a thorough scientific examination). But scientists of the Russian Empire did not want such a striking example of weapons art to be considered the creation of foreign masters. The exhibit of the Armory Chamber was named “Damask steel helmet by Nikita Davydov” and dated 1621. The Islamic inscription was explained by the fact that at the beginning of the 17th century, Arabic was used in Rus' for some rituals and as a second church language.
At the same time, the researchers referred to the huge number of weapons and jewelry stored in various museums, on which Arabic inscriptions were applied. For example, on one of the richly inlaid sabers there is an Islamic saying that can be translated as “In the name of God, the good and the merciful.” On the helmet of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, also called the Jericho cap because of its shape, the Arabic words “Allah Muhammad” are repeated seven times around its circumference. The Islamic inscription is even present on the miter of an Orthodox bishop, which is kept in the museum of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra - it is placed under a precious stone located next to the Orthodox cross.
A similar point of view was shared by Soviet researchers of the mid-20th century (in particular, F.Ya. Mishutin and L.V. Pisarevskaya): the helmet of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich was made by the Russian master Nikita Davydov, and the Islamic inscription was made based on the existing military and religious traditions. But if we accept the version about Arabic as the second church language, why is there no Cyrillic inscription on the helmet relating to the main church language? And most importantly, why is there a quote on the headdress not from the Bible, but from the Koran?
Canvas for work
The colorful album “The State Armory Chamber” (authors I.A. Bobrovnitskaya, L.P. Kirillova and others, published in 1990) provides a different point of view. Researchers believe that Russian masters of the 17th century simply copied eastern weapons along with the inscriptions on them. In their opinion, Nikita Davydov created the helmet, which was once attributed to Alexander Nevsky, from a certain unpreserved sample, reproducing Arabic script and, in addition, decorating it with Orthodox symbols.
The mystery of the Jericho hat of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich was revealed only at the end of the 20th century, when in the historical archives they found a sheet from the book of the State Order, dated 1621, about the issuance of several arshins of fabric to the master Nikita Davydov, which the sovereign granted to him for being a “crown , the targets and ears were covered with gold” (the crown is the top of the helmet, the target is a separate ornament, the ears are plates for protecting the ears). Thus, the Russian master clearly did not make the headdress, but only supplemented and decorated it.
Then everything is quite simple and clear. The very phrase “Jericho hat” indicates the Middle Eastern city of Jericho - that is, the helmet, like many other weapons, was forged in the Middle East, most likely in Iran. Eastern damask steel was highly valued in the Middle Ages, and inscriptions in Arabic were carefully preserved and served as something of a quality mark.
The authentic helmet of Alexander Nevsky has not yet been discovered. But we can remember that in the autumn of the distant 1808, near the village of Lykovo, Vladimir province, the peasant woman Larionova found a headdress that belonged to the father of the holy prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich (in these places in 1216 there was a battle on the Lipitsa River - one of the internecine battles of the sons of Vsevolod the Big Nest for the Vladimir throne ). It was he who served as the prototype for the princely helmet in the film by Sergei Eisenstein and on the Soviet military order. So there is hope that one day Alexander Nevsky’s headdress will be found. And maybe not even alone.
On the eve of the anniversary of the Battle of Kulikovo, photographs of helmets of Russian princes and tsars with Arabic script appeared on the Internet as if by order.
“This is evidence that the Russians have been dancing to the tune of the Horde for centuries!” - malicious comments from bloggers immediately began to pour in. History buffs, of course, will laugh at such conclusions. But it’s really interesting: where do the Arabic words on our helmets come from?
THE KING'S HAT SPEAKS
Indeed, on the helmet of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov are written the words of a prayer from the Koran: “Delight the faithful with the promise of help from Allah and speedy victory.” In the 19th century, this helmet was even placed in the center of the coat of arms of the Russian Empire - based on the legend that Alexander Nevsky wore it.
But the examination showed that this “hat” was forged and decorated with oriental sayings in the 16th century in Turkey and was delivered to Russia with embassy gifts. A century later, the helmet was decorated with Christian faces by the gunsmith Nikita Davydov. Which was common practice. Think for yourself: if the king, who was considered by the people to be the representative of God on earth, understood that there were sayings from the Koran on his helmet, would he wear it?
So where did the Russian tsars get their eastern armor? - I ask the curator of the cold steel collection of the Moscow Kremlin Museums Vasily Novoselov:
They became popular among the Russian tsars at the turn of the 15th - 16th centuries, when the bow began to dominate the battlefield. They were bought in the east, but even more often received as a gift. In maneuverable combat, protection from arrows was needed. Therefore, spheroconic helmets and chain mail aventails appeared in the armor of the noble warrior. All this was complemented by a damask saber.
And eastern craftsmen, when decorating helmets, wove into the decor inscriptions in Arabic or Persian, often of a religious nature.
ORIENTAL ELM was CONSIDERED AN ORNAMENT
But did the kings even understand what was written there? Could they know Arabic?
Oriental inscriptions on weapons were mistaken for part of traditional decor. As an example, we can cite the decoration of the helmet of Ivan the Terrible, which is kept in Sweden (it was taken from the Kremlin by the Poles during the Time of Troubles and passed on to the Swedes during the capture of Warsaw. - Author). The same fragments of words are repeated on it, in which the name is guessed - Allah. Apparently, the Russian master also applied them as an ornament, not knowing the meaning, and therefore repeated part of the name several times without any meaning.
As for ordinary soldiers, their armor and weapons in our museum are represented by single, miraculously surviving specimens, since during the Troubles of 1605 - 1613. The Kremlin arsenal was plundered by the Polish garrison. We can only assume that the warrior-combatant of the Battle of Kulikovo could go into battle with a sword (at the end of the 15th century they were replaced by sabers and broadswords) and a long spear for a mounted ramming blow.
September 19, 2015 Alexander BOYKO @AlexBoykoKP http://www.kp.ru/daily/26435.7...
Russian victories with “Muslim” weapons
Russian weapons, which were destined to win many great victories and be sung by poets, were at one time entirely “Muslim”. Not only were Arabic words written on it, but even entire verses from the Koran and Islamic prayers (duas). Why was this done, how can it be explained today, and why does the traditional version not stand up to criticism? More on this below.
In the collection of the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin, objects from the 16th-17th centuries, covered with Arabic inscriptions and characteristic oriental patterns, attract attention. The large album “State Armory” contains some of these items and gives a brief explanation of their origin.
The authors of the album offer their “explanation” for the Arabic inscriptions on Russian weapons. They say that Russian craftsmen copied oriental weapons, which were considered the best in the world, and, imitating, also copied inscriptions in a language unfamiliar to them, without particularly going into their meaning.
To understand how typical weapons with Arabic inscriptions are for the Armory Chamber collection, let us turn to the inventory of the Moscow Kremlin Armory Chamber, compiled in 1862 by assistant director of the Armory Chamber Lukian Yakovlev. This rare document exists only in a calligraphic manuscript and is stored in the archives of the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin.
As stated in the inventory, during its compilation, the eastern inscriptions were analyzed by Mullah Kheireddin Agyev, his brother Mullah Zeyeddin and their father, Akhun of the Moscow Mukhamedan Society, Imam Magomet Rafik Ageyev. The mentioned paper is the most complete among other inventories of the Moscow Armory Chamber, stored in the Moscow Kremlin Museum (Uspenskaya Zvonnitsa) in the Armory Chamber Archive, which we were able to get acquainted with in 1998.
In addition to the indicated inventory by Lukian Yakovlev, in the Archives of the Armory Chamber we saw several more handwritten inventories of bladed weapons from the Armory Chamber. However, unlike the inventory of L. Yakovlev, they do not contain drawings or translations of Arabic inscriptions on weapons. For some reason, these drawings and translations are not in the printed version of L. Yakovlev’s inventory, compiled and published by Filimonov in 1884. Thus, the handwritten inventory of the Armory Chamber by L. Yakovlev is, apparently, the only complete source on Arabic inscriptions on objects of the Moscow Armory Chamber.
The inventory notes 46 sabers belonging to Mikhail Fedorovich, Alexei Mikhailovich, Ivan Alekseevich Romanov, as well as Russian princes of the 16th-17th centuries. In L. Yakovlev's inventory, descriptions of sabers are provided with indications of the form: “Russian”, “Eastern”, “Turkish sample”, etc., relating either to the place of manufacture or to the sample according to which this or that saber was made. At the same time, it is not always clear what exactly – the place of manufacture or the name of the sample – is meant.
Analysis of the data clearly shows that the most significant part of the edged weapons of the Moscow Armory Chamber are sabers. This is no coincidence.
It is believed that in the 16th-17th centuries the saber was the typical most popular weapon of the Russian warrior. For example, in the collection “Essays on Russian Culture of the 16th-17th Centuries” it is stated that the traditional melee weapon in the Russian army was the saber. All types of troops (!) were armed with it.
“The saber became a melee weapon in the 16th century - both Russian and foreign evidence speaks of its complete dominance and widespread distribution. So, without exception, all 288 children of boyars and nobles, 100 people of Ryashans, including “noviki” who had just enlisted in the saber service, only a few servants were armed with spears. The drawings of the Nikon manuscript also depict horsemen always with sabers.” We present here two drawings of Russian mounted warriors borrowed by P. P. Epifanov from the medieval description of Muscovy by S. Herberstein.
P. P. Epifanov further writes: “Tens - lists of nobles and their servants, compiled at periodic reviews, give a clear idea of the armament of the Russian cavalry of the 16th century. Here are typical entries: “To be in his service on a horse, in armor, in a helmet, in mirrors, in bracers, with a batarlyk, in a saber, and behind him were three people on horses, in armor, in iron hats, in saadatsekh, in a saber , one with a simple (spare) horse, two with a spear, and a man on a gelding with a yuk (pack)”; “to be in his service on a horse, in a thick tegily, in an iron hat, in a saadak, in a saber, and a man on a gelding with a horse.” In the first case, the weapons and armor of a noble “court” nobleman are presented, in the second - a less wealthy “policeman”.
The saber was in service with foot troops, as well as “fire infantry.” The article presents two drawings depicting a Russian infantryman and a Russian warrior of “fiery combat” of the 16th century. In the 17th century, this order was maintained until the introduction of Romanov soldiers and military units, built and armed in a Western manner.
“The main striking weapon of the cavalry was the saber. According to a foreign observer, most of the Russian cavalry, dressed in iron chain mail, were armed with “crooked short sabers”; broadswords were more rare.”
Despite the popularity of the saber as a weapon in the Moscow troops of the 16th-17th centuries, in the inventory of the Armory Chamber of 1862 sabers of the “Moscow model” are not found as often as one might expect. Even if we include all sabers for which there is no indication of the type or place of manufacture.
Thus, among the sabers owned by Russian princes and tsars of the 16th-17th centuries, up to Ivan Alekseevich Romanov, the share of “Moscow model” sabers, according to documents, is only 34.8%. This is almost two times less than the number of “foreign” sabers, the share of which is 65.3%. The same picture can be seen in the collection of unnamed sabers and saber bands: 96.2% of “foreign” types versus 3.6% of blades not made according to a “foreign” model.
It should be noted that a significant part of the sabers stored in the Armory are blades of the so-called “eastern” sample. Thus, among the sabers belonging to Mikhail Fedorovich, Alexei Mikhailovich, Ivan Alekseevich Romanov, as well as Russian princes of the 16th-17th centuries, the share of sabers allegedly of the “eastern” type is 50% of the total. And among saber bands - 39.7%, not counting 24% of Cherkassy and Tauriz sabers.
From the point of view of the version of Russian history accepted today, it turns out that the collection of traditional Russian weapons of the Moscow Kremlin consists mainly of sabers of foreign types. Moreover, from sabers made according to models adopted in states hostile to Muscovite Rus'.
After all, as is believed in traditional history, the Muslim East, and in particular the Ottoman Empire, was a constant military-political and religious enemy of Rus'. And with its western neighbors - Poland, Lithuania and the Livonian Order - relations between Muscovite Rus', as we are assured, were far from friendly. It is hard to believe that in such a situation Rus' did not have its own developed weapons production and its Russian, national design.
Therefore, the collection of sabers from the Armory within the framework of traditional history looks unnatural. It requires special explanation.
Based on traditional history, it is logical to assume that a crusader will write a motto in Latin on his shield, a Muslim will write verses from the Koran, and a Russian warrior will use at least his native language. Instead, we see the dominance of so-called “eastern” weapons in Rus' with religious inscriptions written almost exclusively in Arabic. As a rule, these are verses from the Koran and appeals to God (du´a).
And we are not talking about captured weapons. Sabers with Arabic inscriptions were bought in Rus', offered as tribute and made in the Armory by Russian craftsmen.
The work of P. P. Epifanov notes that Russian sabers with a slightly curved blade were “similar” to Turkish ones. “Despite the known differences in design - some had bladed crosspieces, others with balls, some had an “elman” (extension in the lower part of the blade), and others did not - in general the sabers were of the same type.”
Apparently, in the 17th century, Russian and Turkish (Eastern) samples simply did not differ. On the other hand, they were contrasted with Western-style sabers - Polish, Lithuanian, German.
A similar situation arises with mirror armor and with the famous “caps of Jericho” - the ceremonial helmets of the Russian tsars. Half of the “Jericho caps,” which are an important part of the ceremonial military attire of the Russian Tsar, have religious Arabic inscriptions. It is striking that languages other than Arabic are not used.
There is even an example of a paradoxical, from the point of view of traditional history, juxtaposition of seemingly completely alien religious symbols on the “caps of Jericho” of the Russian tsars. So, for example, on the “cap of Jericho” by Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the work of the master of the Armory Chamber Nikita Davydov in 1621, the Arabic Koranic inscription is placed in the stamps: “Give joy to the faithful with the promise of God’s help and speedy victory.” This inscription is adjacent to eight-pointed Orthodox crosses on the helmet itself and with the image of the Archangel Michael on the arrow of the helmet.
Another example. On the mirrors of the royal armor of the first Romanovs, stored in the Moscow Armory, only the titles of Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich are written in Cyrillic in Russian. The religious inscriptions on the mirrors are written entirely in Arabic.
In general, the following picture can be traced, striking from the point of view of the version of Russian history instilled in us, the picture. Inscriptions are usually present on traditional Russian princely weapons - a saber, mirrored damask armor and the Jericho cap - which was part of the “great outfit” of the Russian tsars.
At the same time, Cyrillic inscriptions constitute a clear minority and, as a rule, indicate ownership of the owner. Such are, for example, the inscription on Mstislavsky’s saber, the inscription on the spear of Grand Duke Boris Alekseevich, on the mace of Mikhail Fedorovich (“By the grace of God we are the great Gospodar Tsar, the Grand Duke of All Rus', the Autocrat”), etc.
At the same time, there are many Arabic inscriptions on Russian weapons. Moreover, only Arabic inscriptions, as a rule, contain religious formulas on Russian weapons. Perhaps the only exception is a bilingual “Turkish” saber of the 16th century from the collection of the Moscow Armory Chamber, on which religious inscriptions are made in both Arabic and Russian.
On the heel of this saber is written in Arabic: “In the name of God, the good and merciful!”, “O conqueror! O protector! Along the butt of the same saber there is an inscription in Cyrillic, also of religious content: “Judge, Lord, those who offend me. Overcome the struggling me. Take your weapon and shield and rise to help.”
Such widespread use of Arabic on old Russian weapons, mainly for religious formulas, suggests that Arabic could have been one of the sacred languages of the Russian Orthodox Church until the 17th century. Other evidence of the use of Arabic in the Russian Orthodox Church of the pre-Romanov era has also been preserved.
For example, a precious miter is the headdress of an Orthodox bishop, which is still kept in the museum of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Her photograph is shown in L. M. Spirina’s album “Treasures of the Sergiev Posad State Historical and Art Museum-Reserve. Old Russian Applied Art" (GIPP "Nizhpoligraf", Nizhny Novgorod, year of publication not specified). On the front of the miter, directly above the Orthodox cross, is a precious stone with an Arabic inscription.
The abundance of Arabic religious inscriptions on items included in the Great Dress of the Russian Tsars, that is, their ceremonial military armor, and the almost complete absence of any inscriptions on other types of weapons (with the exception of the manufacturer's marks on swords and German swords) also serves as an indirect evidence in favor of the use of Arabic in Rus' as the old language of traditional rituals and the old church language.
The Moscow tsars of that time, as is known, were in the eyes of the people the governors of God on Earth. Therefore, they had to adhere to the old Russian traditions with special care. In particular, to use religious formulas written “in the old way”, in Arabic, on ceremonial armor, paying tribute to the ways in which our fathers and grandfathers lived, which have been hallowed for centuries.
This subconscious conservatism of any society apparently manifests itself in the issue under consideration. It is clear that such conservatism should be especially strongly expressed in the design of weapons.
There is no doubt that the Russian medieval warrior, like any other, jealously ensured that his weapons had only the correct symbols and inscriptions, tested by their fathers and grandfathers. Because he believed that such inscriptions would help in battle and bring good luck. And new inscriptions, not tested by fathers and grandfathers, may turn out to be “wrong” and bring death. Therefore, the inscriptions on weapons had to be especially conservative.
And the assertions of modern commentators that Russian soldiers painted inscriptions and symbols of their enemies on their weapons “for beauty” look completely absurd. Moreover, as we see from the meeting of the Armory Chamber, in large numbers.
The Russian tradition of writing on weapons in Arabic was so strong that it continued to be followed in the 18th century, when Turkey was widely declared the eternal enemy of the Christian world. Thus, Catherine the Second awarded Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich a saber with an Egyptian damask blade containing, in particular, on the front side the Arabic inscription: “There is no other deity but the One God,” “The Most High God,” “God preserves the one who prays.”