Ketevan the Martyr
Encyclopedia
Ketevan, "the Martyr" (1565 – September 13, 1624) was a queen of Kakheti
, a kingdom in eastern Georgia
. She was killed at Shiraz
, Iran
, after prolonged tortures for refusing to give up the Christian
faith and embrace Islam
.
(Bagrationi) and married Prince David of Kakheti, the future David I
, king of Kakheti from 1601 to 1602. After David’s death, Ketevan engaged in religious building and charity. However, when David’s brother Constantine I
killed his reigning father, Alexander II
, and usurped the crown with the Safavid Iranian support in 1605, Ketevan rallied the Kakhetian nobles against the patricide and routed Constantine’s loyal force. After the uprising, she negotiated with Shah Abbas I of Iran to confirm her underage son, Teimuraz I
, as king of Kakheti, while she assumed the function of a regent.
In 1614, sent by Teimuraz as a negotiator to Abbas I, Ketevan effectively surrendered herself as an honorary hostage in a failed attempt to prevent Kakheti from being attacked by the Iranian armies. She was held in Shiraz for several years until Abbas I, in an act of revenge for the recalcitrance of Teimuraz, ordered the queen to renounce Christianity, and upon her refusal, had her tortured to death with red-hot pincers in 1624. Portions of her relics were clandestinely taken by the St. Augustine
Portuguese
Catholic missioners, eyewitnesses of her martyrdom, to Georgia where they were interred at the Alaverdi Cathedral. The rest of her remains are reported to have been buried at the St. Augustine Church in Goa
, India
. Several expeditions from Georgia have arrived in Goa, and searched in vain for the exact location of her grave.
Queen Ketevan was canonized by Zachary, Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia
(1613–1630), and September 26
was instituted by the Georgian Orthodox Church as the day of her commemoration.
The account of Ketevan's martyrdom related by the Augustinians missioners were exploited by her son, Teimuraz, in his poem The Book and Passion of Queen Ketevan (წიგნი და წამება ქეთევან დედოფლისა, ts'igni da ts'ameba ketevan dedoplisa; 1625) as well as by the German
author Andreas Gryphius
in his classical tragedy Katharine von Georgien (1657). The Georgian monk Grigol Dodorkeli-Vakhvakhishvili
of the David Gareja Monastery was another near-contemporaneous author whose writings, a hagiographic work as well as several hymns, focus on Ketevan's life and martyrdom.
has led to a relic
"hunt" during the last decades. Notably in Goa
, and since 1989, various delegations coming from Georgia
have worked together with the Archaeological Survey of India
to try to locate Ketevan's grave within the ruins of the Augustinian convent of Our Lady of Grace, at Old Goa
, Goa. All these efforts were thwarted, because the teams were unable to interpret correctly the Portuguese documents that provided for clues as to Ketevan's burial place.
These historical sources stated that Ketevan's palm and arm bone fragments were kept inside a stone urn beneath a specific window within the Chapter Chapel of the Augustinian convent.
In May 2004, the Chapter Chapel and window mentioned in the sources were found during a collaboration work between Portuguese
and Overseas Citizen of India architect Sidh Losa Mendiratta and the Archaeological Survey of India
, Goa-circle (at the time when Nizammudin Taher was superintendent archaeologist). Although the stone urn itself was missing, its coping stone and a number of bone fragments were found close to the window mentioned in the Portuguese sources.
Indian scientists have conducted a DNA
analysis on the bone fragments found during this excavation, but the mystery of Ketevan's relics continues, since a matching analysis would be necessary from supposed relics existing in Georgia.
Kingdom of Kakheti
The Kingdom of Kakheti was a late medieval/early modern monarchy in eastern Georgia, centered at the province of Kakheti, with its capital first at Gremi and then at Telavi...
, a kingdom in eastern Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
. She was killed at Shiraz
Shiraz
Shiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, after prolonged tortures for refusing to give up the Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
faith and embrace Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
.
Life
Ketevan was born to Prince Ashotan of MukhraniHouse of Mukhrani
The house of Mukhrani is a Georgian princely family, a collateral branch of the former royal dynasty of Bagrationi of which it sprung early in the 16th century, and received in appanage the domain of Mukhrani located in Kartli, central Georgia...
(Bagrationi) and married Prince David of Kakheti, the future David I
David I of Kakheti
David I , of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was a king of Kakheti in eastern Georgia from October 1601 until his death in October 1602....
, king of Kakheti from 1601 to 1602. After David’s death, Ketevan engaged in religious building and charity. However, when David’s brother Constantine I
Constantine I of Kakheti
Constantine I or Constantine Khan , of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was a king of Kakheti in eastern Georgia from March to October 1605....
killed his reigning father, Alexander II
Alexander II of Kakheti
Alexander II , of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was a king of Kakheti in eastern Georgia from 1574 to 1605. In spite of a precarious international situation, he managed to retain relative economic stability in his kingdom and tried to establish contacts with the Tsardom of Russia...
, and usurped the crown with the Safavid Iranian support in 1605, Ketevan rallied the Kakhetian nobles against the patricide and routed Constantine’s loyal force. After the uprising, she negotiated with Shah Abbas I of Iran to confirm her underage son, Teimuraz I
Teimuraz I of Kakheti
Teimuraz I , of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was a Georgian monarch who ruled, with intermissions, as King of Kakheti from 1605 to 1648 and also of Kartli from 1625 to 1633...
, as king of Kakheti, while she assumed the function of a regent.
In 1614, sent by Teimuraz as a negotiator to Abbas I, Ketevan effectively surrendered herself as an honorary hostage in a failed attempt to prevent Kakheti from being attacked by the Iranian armies. She was held in Shiraz for several years until Abbas I, in an act of revenge for the recalcitrance of Teimuraz, ordered the queen to renounce Christianity, and upon her refusal, had her tortured to death with red-hot pincers in 1624. Portions of her relics were clandestinely taken by the St. Augustine
Augustinians
The term Augustinians, named after Saint Augustine of Hippo , applies to two separate and unrelated types of Catholic religious orders:...
Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
Catholic missioners, eyewitnesses of her martyrdom, to Georgia where they were interred at the Alaverdi Cathedral. The rest of her remains are reported to have been buried at the St. Augustine Church in Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Several expeditions from Georgia have arrived in Goa, and searched in vain for the exact location of her grave.
Queen Ketevan was canonized by Zachary, Catholicos-Patriarch of Georgia
Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia
Catholicos–Patriarch has been the title of the heads of the Georgian Orthodox Church since 1010. The first Catholicos–Patriarch of All Georgia was Melkisedek I...
(1613–1630), and September 26
September 13 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Sep. 12 - Eastern Orthodox Church calendar - Sep. 14All fixed commemorations below celebrated on Sep. 26 by Old Calendarists-Saints:*Hieromartyr Cornelius the Centurion *Saint Aristides the Athenian *Saint Peter of Atroe...
was instituted by the Georgian Orthodox Church as the day of her commemoration.
The account of Ketevan's martyrdom related by the Augustinians missioners were exploited by her son, Teimuraz, in his poem The Book and Passion of Queen Ketevan (წიგნი და წამება ქეთევან დედოფლისა, ts'igni da ts'ameba ketevan dedoplisa; 1625) as well as by the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
author Andreas Gryphius
Andreas Gryphius
Andreas Gryphius was a German lyric poet and dramatist.Asteroid 496 Gryphia is named in his honour.-Life and career:...
in his classical tragedy Katharine von Georgien (1657). The Georgian monk Grigol Dodorkeli-Vakhvakhishvili
Vakhvakhishvili
Vakhvakhishvili was a Georgian noble family, originally known, since the twelfth century, in the province of Samtskhe whence they later moved to the kingdom of Kakheti...
of the David Gareja Monastery was another near-contemporaneous author whose writings, a hagiographic work as well as several hymns, focus on Ketevan's life and martyrdom.
Relics and Archaeological Findings
The importance of Queen Ketevan for the Georgian peopleGeorgian people
The Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
has led to a relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
"hunt" during the last decades. Notably in Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, and since 1989, various delegations coming from Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
have worked together with the Archaeological Survey of India
Archaeological Survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India is a department of the Government of India, attached to the Ministry of Culture . The ASI is responsible for archaeological studies and the preservation of archaeological heritage of the country in accordance with the various acts of the Indian Parliament...
to try to locate Ketevan's grave within the ruins of the Augustinian convent of Our Lady of Grace, at Old Goa
Old Goa
Old Goa or Velha Goa is a historical city in North Goa district in the Indian state of Goa. The city was constructed by the Bijapur Sultanate in the 15th century, and served as capital of Portuguese India from the 16th century until its abandonment in the 18th century due to plague...
, Goa. All these efforts were thwarted, because the teams were unable to interpret correctly the Portuguese documents that provided for clues as to Ketevan's burial place.
These historical sources stated that Ketevan's palm and arm bone fragments were kept inside a stone urn beneath a specific window within the Chapter Chapel of the Augustinian convent.
In May 2004, the Chapter Chapel and window mentioned in the sources were found during a collaboration work between Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Overseas Citizen of India architect Sidh Losa Mendiratta and the Archaeological Survey of India
Archaeological Survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India is a department of the Government of India, attached to the Ministry of Culture . The ASI is responsible for archaeological studies and the preservation of archaeological heritage of the country in accordance with the various acts of the Indian Parliament...
, Goa-circle (at the time when Nizammudin Taher was superintendent archaeologist). Although the stone urn itself was missing, its coping stone and a number of bone fragments were found close to the window mentioned in the Portuguese sources.
Indian scientists have conducted a DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
analysis on the bone fragments found during this excavation, but the mystery of Ketevan's relics continues, since a matching analysis would be necessary from supposed relics existing in Georgia.