Helmet of Alexander Nevsky: Arabic inscriptions, photo

Alexander Nevsky is a very bright historical personality, made a lot for the greatness of Russia. Having entered the principality quite at a difficult time, he managed not only to preserve the territories entrusted to him, but also to strengthen relations with the Golden Horde, and also to give battle to the Crusaders on Lake Peipsi. All these facts are well known, but in addition to the canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church prince left a lot of secrets and mysteries, stirring the minds of historians and archaeologists. Most of all, scientists are worried about the helmet of Alexander Nevsky, which looks very unusual for the Slavic culture. Although, until now, this item, stored in the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin, was considered a genuine element of the military uniform of the Grand Duke, the scientists expressed several other versions of its origin. Today we will try to approach the solution of the mystery that Alexander Nevsky's helmet has kept for many centuries.

Description of the helmet

The helmet of Alexander Nevsky, whose photo can be seen on the pages of school history books, has been kept in the Armory for many years. He is one of the most precious of her treasures. And really this subject looks very impressive. Approximately it dates back to the thirteenth century, but it is known that in the seventeenth centuries the helmet was subjected to some alteration and received additional decorations.

Helmet of Alexander Nevsky is made of iron of a reddish shade and has a semicircular shape. It is covered with gold and silver ornate ornament, the whole circumference of the helmet is decorated with precious stones and pearls. A skilled court master on it are more than two hundred rubies, almost a hundred diamonds and ten emeralds. On the nose of the helmet is a lacquer miniature depicting the archangel Michael, and along the perimeter are engraved royal crowns and an Orthodox cross. But this does not make the museum exhibit so unique, the whole mystery lies in the inscription made around the pointed top. Do you want to know what is written on the helmet of Alexander Nevsky? You will be very surprised, because the inscription is in Arabic and contains a verse from the Koran. Why on the helmet of Alexander Nevsky Arabian ligature? How could an Orthodox prince wear armor with inscriptions of Gentiles? Let's try to reveal this secret a little.

What is written on the helmet of Alexander Nevsky?

So what is the secret of this historical artifact? As we already mentioned, scientists for a long time studied the helmet of Alexander Nevsky. Arabic inscriptions (photo we have given in this article) could be translated quite easily, and their coincidence with the Koran was known even in ancient times. A beautiful pattern on the helmet of the Russian prince is written as follows: "Congratulate the faithful with the promise of God's help and an early victory."

It is worth noting that this verse is very popular among Muslims. He is considered one of the main verses of the Koran. With what intent did his master apply for the helmet of the Russian prince? We have only to disclose this secret.

Mysteries of Alexander Nevsky

Alexander Nevsky is an extraordinary personality of his time. Being the son of Grand Duke Yaroslav Vsevolodich, he appears before his descendants as a wise and far-sighted ruler who managed to establish relations with the Golden Horde and even influence its foreign policy.

Surprisingly, this strange friendship with the Tatars caused even a lot of questions among the prince's contemporaries. At one time there were even rumors that Alexander Nevsky was the son of Khan Baty. Most likely, this legend was born from the fact that the prince in his entire life visited the Horde four times and called Sartak, the son of Batu, his named brother. It is known that in the horde Prince Alexander dreamed to create a stronghold of the Christian state and even persuaded Sartak to accept Orthodoxy. This extraordinary influence and friendship between the nations could explain where the Arabian ligature came from Alexander Nevsky's helmet, if not for one "but". It is hard to imagine that the Russian prince went into battle for Russia in armor, having inscriptions in Arabic and Orthodox symbols. It was simply impossible in those days. In addition, Russian craftsmen could not forge this product, so perfectly coinciding with all the traditions of oriental forging. Where did this helmet come from and who is its author?

The master who forged the helmet: who is he?

Scientists for a long time argue about who forged the helmet of Alexander Nevsky. Arab inscriptions, it seemed, quite clearly indicate its eastern origin. But with respect to history, never and in anything you should not be so sure.

In Russia blacksmithing was quite developed, Slavic masters often even taught this craft representatives of different peoples. Therefore, it is not surprising that Russian armor turned out to be very durable and skillfully made. But to decorate them with Arabic script was not accepted. And how can this be possible? After all, in the thirteenth century, the Tatar-Mongol yoke was dominating Russia. Then why is the inscription on the helmet of Alexander Nevsky executed in Arabic? Scientists made several assumptions about this.

According to one of them - the helmet was a gift of the Khan of the Golden Horde to the Russian prince, symbolizing friendship and respect. Alexander Nevsky did not leave the received gift without attention and put it on every military campaign. It is likely that the helmet was created in Saray-Batu, the capital of the Golden Horde. This version has the right to exist, because it is proved that the warriors of the khan never killed skilled craftsmen. They stayed to live in the capital of the Horde and produced just real masterpieces of art. Outland masters made excellent jewelry, wonderful weapons and, of course, armor.

If you stick to this version, then there is only one question - why the helmet of Alexander Nevsky, made by oriental masters, contains Orthodox symbols? Here, scientists had to seriously rack their brains before they advanced a new hypothesis.

Historical value of the helmet

Helmet of Alexander Nevsky, Arabic inscriptions on which cause so many questions, played a very significant role in the history of the Russian state. In the seventeenth century he was presented to Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov as a gift. On his decoration, the funds from the tsarist treasury and as a result of the work of the court master Nikita Danilov, he gained an unprecedented luxury.

From that moment the helmet became an indispensable attribute of the Russian tsars. And in the middle of the nineteenth century it was even placed on the state arms. Scientists believe that this unprecedented attachment of the Romanovs to this subject is explained quite simply - it meant the continuity of the Romanov dynasty, who became rulers after the Rurikovichs. It was this that made the old helmet so important and significant, as if it claimed a new royal power. Gemmed with precious stones, the helmet was called the "Yerichonian cap of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich."

Yerihon Hats: the meaning of the name

In the Armory Chamber are several Erikhon hats. They are helmets worn by Russian princes. These products always had a ceremonial appearance and numerous decorations. Historians believe that these items are not so much used in battles, how many served as paraphernalia or during palace rituals.

The origin of the name of the data "caps" is interesting. The fact is that the Russian kings associated themselves with Jesus and victory over Jericho. They considered themselves governors of the supreme forces on earth and in battles were ready to crush any enemy who encroached on Russia. To frighten the enemy, to inspire his army and give importance to his person wearing ceremonial helmets, nicknamed "Erihon hat."

Interesting is the fact that the very first Erichon hat, which is the oldest, is also the most expensive at the same time. Its value exceeds the prices of five other similar items combined.

The mystery of Alexander Nevsky's helmet

History, as is known, often gives scientists more puzzles than riddles. Therefore, it is not surprising that many archaeological finds are not at all what they are initially taken for. Unfortunately, a similar story happened with the helmet of Alexander Nevsky.

In the middle of the twentieth century, technology reached a level that could accurately indicate the date of manufacture of a particular object. The famous helmet was also subjected to research, which did not give rest to historians its uniqueness. After long manipulations it was established that the version of the helmet belonging to Alexander Nevsky is just a legend. Experts determined that the object was made in the seventeenth century, almost four hundred years after the death of Prince Alexander.

Surprisingly, this did not make it easier for scientists to determine the master who made the helmet and its purpose. Mysteries continued to multiply.

Disputes about the origin of the helmet

Interestingly, the research of scientists did not put an end to the history of the helmet. Many specialists continue to assert that he nevertheless belonged to Alexander Nevsky, and laboratory technicians were simply mistaken in the calculations.

Their main argument is the fact that the unknown helmet, which has no historical value, the Romanovs would not have been turned into a relic and depicted on the state emblem. Of course, there is still a grain of truth in these arguments. It is hard to imagine that the newly-made Tsar spent so much money on decorating an ordinary helmet with Arabic inscriptions, and then began to use it as the main holiday attribute.

No matter how attractive this story is in the eyes of patriots who advocate sensational findings, we can not refute serious scientific research and will focus on them in this article.

Versions about the appearance of Mikhail Fedorovich's Erihon cap

If we take as a basis the version that the helmet appeared at the court of the tsar only in the seventeenth century, then to discover the secret of its origin is no less interesting than to learn about his master. Historians in their majority tend to the fact that the eastern helmet was a gift from a very important person.

Perhaps he was a diplomatic gift, which the king simply could not accept. But how to put on a helmet with a foreign inscription? This question, most likely, seriously worried Mikhail Fedorovich. In those days at court there were enough educated people who owned several foreign languages. Therefore, the assumption that the tsar did not know about the translation of the inscription is simply ridiculous.

Many experts are inclined to the version according to which Romanov found the best way out of a rather delicate situation: he ordered to decorate the subject with Orthodox symbols, which diverted attention from the inscription in Arabic, and turned a dangerous gift into the property of the state.

Of course, this is just another version, but it is rather believable and does not go beyond historical events.

Mysterious East: mixing of two cultures

Explanations of the origin of the inscription on the helmet, stored in the Armory, given in this article, are verified scientific facts. But here is one riddle of Arabian inscriptions still left - on Russian weapons, various items and even Orthodox church paraphernalia were often applied Arabic ligature. This seems incredible, but the facts speak for themselves - the Arab and Slavic cultures were very closely interrelated.

The Armory holds enough copies of weapons, on which various phrases in Arabic are engraved. And all these weapons are not trophy, it was made either by Slavic masters, or received as a gift. But the amount of these items is simply amazing.

Many historians even put forward a rather bold hypothesis that in ancient times the Arabic language was used as a church language. This allows you to approve the headpiece of the bishop, which is a beautiful jewel with an Arabic inscription. Similar finds have been made by archaeologists.

Of course, officially neither the scientific world nor the Orthodox Church recognizes this fact, because it can completely change the notion of Russian history.

Conclusion

And what about the real helmet of Alexander Nevsky? Where is he located? It may upset you, but it has not yet been found. Therefore, archaeologists and historians have every chance to touch the real helmet, which belonged to the great son of Yaroslav Fedorovich.