Sanctity, Gender and Authority in Medieval Caucasia

The cult of saints and relics spread across Christendom from the British Isles to Iran, and was integrated into Armenian and Georgian identity and political discourses in late antique Caucasia. This book is the first systematic study of this history, focusing on the interaction of sanctity, holy relics, gender, and politics in the medieval Caucasus, with a particular focus on Georgia.

Format: Hardback
Length: 360 pages
Publication date: 31 May 2024
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

From the early fourth century, the veneration of saints and relics spread rapidly across Christendom, from the British Isles to Iran. In late antique Caucasia, the cult of the saints was immediately integrated into Armenian and Georgian identity and political discourses. It was used to legitimise royal rule, sanctify domains and dynasties, define political realms, and justify political decisions. This book is the first systematic study of this history. Discussing a wide variety of sources from Armenia, Georgia, Byzantium, and Russia, which have not been examined together before, it investigates the interaction of sanctity, holy relics, gender, and politics in the medieval Caucasus, with a particular focus on Georgia. Nikoloz Aleksidze analyses three chronological eras: the first section focuses on late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, when the cult of the relics was formed in Caucasian writing; the second explores the medieval era, when the Bagratids ruled in Georgia and the cults of figures such as St. George, the Mother of God, and Queen Tamar were shaped and politicised; and the third navigates a similar entanglement of sanctity, gender, and political rhetoric in Russian Imperial and Georgian national discourse.

Weight: 706g
Dimension: 162 x 241 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781474498616