Fragments of Armenian Miniature Art of the Ninth Century (Bagratid Kingdom Era)

Abstract

Regrettably, numerous examples of early Armenian miniatures have not survived to the present day. The era of Arab dominance had a negative impact on Armenian manuscript art, leading to the loss of the manuscripts copied between the VII and IX centuries and only a handful of copies and guard-leaf sewn into the manuscripts have survived from this period. In this study, we will focus on a particular guard-leaf fragment affixed into the Matenadaran manuscript (ms. M963), which is a palimpsest. The initial manuscript, employed as the foundation for the new one, is a Gospel written in բոլորգիծ երկաթագիր/bolorgits erkat’agir (the Armenian circular uncial script). The new manuscript dates back to the fourteenth century and is a Mashtots’ (ritual book). Deacon Յովհաննէս/John is its scribe and miniaturist, and it was commissioned by Bishop Stepanos. The guard-leaves found in the manuscript are believed to be remnants of the earlier Armenian uncial script manuscript into which the Mashtots’ was transcribed. This inference is drawn from a comparative analysis of the remaining traces of writing on other pages of the manuscript. The guard-leaves in the M963 manuscript are notable for their resemblance to Byzantine miniatures. These fragments represent another instance of Armenian miniatures from the ninth century, a comparative examination of which suggests the possibility that they were created in one of the scriptoria of the Bagratid kingdom, where familiarity with Byzantine artistic traditions was evident.