Georgian National Museum

This magnificently wrought openwork ornament is the most impressive element of an elaborate headdress worn by the principal deceased from Grave 24. In technique and form, the piece is firmly rooted in local Colchian production. What makes the piece so fascinating, however, is its wide array of cultural influences.

Framed on three sides by rounded studs, the central area features a stylized stag and three smaller deer set around it––a motif also present in the gold work of the nomadic Scythians in the northwest. The piece’s openwork design recalls objects produced in Luristan in the southeast. Along the folded upper edge is a pair of outward-facing lions that, in composition, seem loosely related to Assyrian door guardians. Between them are three birds, a motif that occurs throughout ancient cultures, but which is particularly present in the goldwork at Vani. Several gold necklaces in this exhibition, for example, incorporate repeating pendants of birds.

As part of a larger headdress that included stylized griffin appliqués, diadem chains with pomegranate finials, temple ornaments, granulated tubular beads most likely worn at the forehead, pendants originally worn around the neck, this intricate openwork ornament most likely took the most prestigious position on the very top of the deceased’s head.

Wine, Worship and Sacrifice: The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani provides a rare glimpse into the ritual life of a major Colchian city. Spectacular finds from two sanctuaries and four tombs illustrate that Colchis was at the crossroads for many different peoples. Dating from the early fifth to the first centuries B.C., objects include silver drinking vessels, bronze and iron figurines used in religious ritual, and a splendid array of gold and silver jewelry. These archaeological finds clearly show that Vani not only maintained a coherent individual identity, but also possessed direct links with Greek, Achaemenid, Phoenician and even Nomadic cultures. Further, from the number of tomb objects related to drinking and libation, it is clear that wine played an important role in Colchian social and religious life.

Organized in partnership with the Freer and Sackler Galleries, this exhibition will be the first time that Colchian art and culture is presented to an American audience. The exhibition will open to the public at ISAW from March 12 - June 1, 2008. A day-and-a-half-scholarly conference will also be held at ISAW from May 16-17th where a group of internationally renowned scholars will present papers on a wide variety of topics including human sacrifice in the graves at Vani, to the important role that Colchis in general played in the development of viticulture, and technical innovation visible in Colchian gold and silver jewelry.

This event was made possible by the Ministry of Culture, Monuments Protection and Sport of Georgia, the Georgian National Museum and the Vani Archaeological Museum.