Joseph Orbeli ( hy, Հովսեփ Աբգարի Օրբելի, Hovsep Abgari Orbeli; russian: Иосиф Абгарович Орбели, Iosif Abgarovich Orbeli; 20 March (
O.S. 8 March) 1887 – 2 February 1961) was a
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
-
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
orientalist, public figure and academician who specialized in medieval history of
Transcaucasia
The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
and administered the
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the largest ...
in
Leningrad
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
from 1934 to 1951. Of
Armenian descent, he was the founder and first president of the
Armenian National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia (NAS RA) ( hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետության գիտությունների ազգային ակադեմիա, ՀՀ ԳԱԱ, ''Hayastani Hanrapetut’yan gitut’yunneri az ...
(1943–47).
[ Yuzbashyan, Karen ''«Օրբելի, Հովսեփ Աբգարի»'' rbeli, Hovsep Abgari]Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia
The ''Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia'' ( hy, Հայկական սովետական հանրագիտարան, ''Haykakan sovetakan hanragitaran''; ASE) publishing house was established in 1967 as a department of the Institute of History of the Armen ...
. Yerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1986, vol. 12, pp. 584–585.
Biography
Early life and education
Born into the
Orbelian Dynasty
The Orbelian lords of the province of Syunik were a noble family of Armenia, with a long history of political influence documented in inscriptions throughout the provinces of Vayots Dzor and Syunik, and recorded by the family historian Bishop ...
in Kutaisi,
Russian Georgia in 1887, Joseph Orbeli completed his secondary education at a classical
gymnasium in
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...
.
[ Anon. "Հովսեփ Օրբելի" ovsep Orbeli '']Patma-Banasirakan Handes
''Patma-Banasirakan Handes'' ( hy, Պատմա-Բանասիրական Հանդես (ՊԲՀ, ''PBH''); russian: Историко-филологический журнал, ''Istoriko-Filologicheskii Zhurnal''; "Historical-Philological Journal") is a ...
'' 12/1 (1961), pp. 229–234. In 1904, he was accepted to
Saint Petersburg University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...
. He studied history and philology (with a particular emphasis in Latin and Greek) and graduated from the university in 1911.
During his student years, Orbeli accompanied his professor,
Nikolai Marr
Nikolai Yakovlevich Marr (, ''Nikolay Yakovlevich Marr''; , ''Nikoloz Iak'obis dze Mari''; — 20 December 1934) was a Georgian-born historian and linguist who gained a reputation as a scholar of the Caucasus during the 1910s before embarking o ...
, to
Russian Armenia
Russian Armenia is the period of Armenian history under Russian rule from 1828, when Eastern Armenia became part of the Russian Empire following Qajar Iran's loss in the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828) and the subsequent ceding of its territorie ...
, where he took part in excavations of the ruins of the medieval Armenian capital of
Ani
Ani ( hy, Անի; grc-gre, Ἄνιον, ''Ánion''; la, Abnicum; tr, Ani) is a ruined medieval Armenian city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia.
Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the ...
.
Marr pushed his pupil to fully immerse himself in the fields of archaeology, literature,
lithography
Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...
and linguistics; otherwise, Marr reasoned, he would find himself unprepared in his research and his studies.
Archaeological studies
Following his graduation, Orbeli departed for Armenia once more. He became the director of an on-site museum that was established at Ani and, during Marr's absences, frequently headed the excavations himself.
He also traveled to
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik, and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The region is m ...
(more precisely, to the historical region of the
Principality of Khachen
The Principality of Khachen ( hy, Խաչենի իշխանություն, Khacheni ishkhanutyun) was a medieval Armenian principality on the territory of historical Artsakh (present-day Nagorno-Karabakh). The provinces of Artsakh and Utik wer ...
), gathering and categorizing lithographic material. Orbeli also managed to travel to
Western Armenia
Western Armenia (Western Armenian: Արեւմտեան Հայաստան, ''Arevmdian Hayasdan'') is a term to refer to the eastern parts of Turkey (formerly the Ottoman Empire) that are part of the historical homeland of the Armenians. Weste ...
, where he was able to study Armenian,
Seljuq, and
Urartian
Urartian or Vannic is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language which was spoken by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom of Urartu (''Biaini'' or ''Biainili'' in Urartian), which was centered on the region around Lake Van and had its capital, Tushpa, ...
monuments and conduct research on Armenian and Kurdish dialects.
Gradually, Orbeli was emerging as the leading authority on Armenian antiquities in the world. In 1912, he became a member of the Imperial Russian Archaeological Society and in 1914, he began teaching
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
and Kurdish studies at Saint Petersburg University. In 1916, he participated in a Russian archaeological expedition around the
Lake Van
Lake Van ( tr, Van Gölü; hy, Վանա լիճ, translit=Vana lič̣; ku, Gola Wanê) is the largest lake in Turkey. It lies in the far east of Turkey, in the provinces of Van and Bitlis in the Armenian highlands. It is a saline soda lake ...
region; it was here where he discovered an inscription attributed to the Urartian king
Sarduri II
Sarduri II (ruled: 764–735 BC) was a King of Urartu, succeeding his father Argishti I to the throne. The Urartian Kingdom was at its peak during his reign, campaigning successfully against several neighbouring powers, including Assyria.
Th ...
.
He continued his work at Saint Petersburg University; in 1917, he was appointed an assistant professor of Armenian-Georgian studies, but occasionally taught at Moscow's
Lazarev Institute of Oriental Languages
The Lazarev Institute of Oriental Languages, ( hy, Լազարևի արևելյան լեզուների ինստիտուտ) established in 1815, was a school specializing in orientalism, with a particular focus on that of Armenia, and was the princi ...
as well.
Academic work
In the years leading up to the
Russian Revolution, Orbeli published a number of books, including a catalogue of artifacts found at Ani and a series of studies dealing with classical philology, Armenian history, archaeology and art.
This led to his appointment to the
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the largest ...
in July 1934, which he would steer through the hardships of
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
's purges.
In December 1941, the deadliest month of the
Siege of Leningrad, Orbeli led a festival dedicated to
Ali-Shir Nava'i, a medieval Turkic poet and philosopher.
Orbeli considerably enhanced the museum's holdings of Oriental art, making it one of the top Oriental art museums in the world. No less important was Orbeli's role as head of the national school of Caucasus studies. Orbeli underscored the importance of linguistic studies for proper understanding of historical processes.
In 1934, as a member of the Soviet delegation, he went to
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
for the
Ferdowsi millennial celebration
The Ferdowsi millennial celebration ( fa, جشن هزاره فردوسی) was a series of celebrations and scholarly events in the year 1934 to commemorate the thousandth anniversary of Ferdowsi's birth. The Ferdowsi millennial was held at the ...
s and visited the cities of
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
and
Mashhad. A year later he organised the 3rd International Congress of Iranian Art and Archeology at the Hermitage Museum and the accompanying exhibition therein. The other spiritus movens of the congress was
Arthur Upham Pope.
In 1955–60, he was in charge of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the renamed
Leningrad University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...
.
Later life
He was buried at
Bogoslovskoe Cemetery
Bogoslovskoe Cemetery (russian: Богословское кладбище) is a cemetery in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is located in the Kalininsky District of the city between and .
The name comes from the church of John the Apostle, (russi ...
in Leningrad. He was featured in the movie ''
Russian Ark
''Russian Ark'' (russian: link=no, Русский ковчег, ''Russkij Kovcheg'') is a 2002 experimental historical drama film directed by Alexander Sokurov. In ''Russian Ark'', an unnamed narrator wanders through the Winter Palace in Saint Pet ...
'' as the director of the Hermitage.
In stamps
File:1987 CPA 5814.jpg, Orbeli on a 1987 Soviet stamp
File:Iosif Orbeli ArmenianStamps 2012.jpg, Joseph Orbeli on an Armenian stamp, 2012
References
Select bibliography
* ''Избранные Труды''
elected works Yerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1963.
* "Akademik Iosif Abgarovich Orbeli: (biograficheskiy ocherk"
he academician Joseph Abgarovich Orbeli: a biographical essay pp.
12 in: Strube V. V. (red). ''Issledovaniia po istorii kul'tury narodov Bostoka: sbornik v chest' akademika I. A. Orbeli''. Moskva Leningrad. Izdatel'stvo Akademiii Nauk SSSR, 1960, 527 p.
Further reading
*
Yuzbashyan, Karen. ''Ակադեմիկոս Հովսեփ Աբգարի Օրբելի''
cademician Hovsep Abgari OrbeliYerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1987.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orbeli, Joseph
1887 births
1961 deaths
Ethnic Armenian historians
People from Kutaisi
Soviet Armenians
Soviet orientalists
Directors of the Hermitage Museum
Full Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences
Soviet historians
Soviet archaeologists
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
Recipients of the Order of Lenin
Medievalists
Historians of Armenia
Armenian orientalists
Burials at Bogoslovskoe Cemetery
20th-century archaeologists