Hermitage Days - 2010
Urartu artifacts: new acquisitions.
To mark the 90th anniversary of the Oriental Department
9 December 2010 - 16 January 2011

9 December 2010 an exhibition Urartu artifacts: new acquisitions, timed to the 90th anniversary of the Oriental Department, was opened during the Hermitage Days in the Anteroom of the Winter Palace.

A collection of Urartian and Caucasian antiquities was presented to the museum by the collector Torkom Demirjian, owner of Ariadne Galleries in New York, with the active support from the Hermitage Museum Foundation (USA), in the end of 2009. It is one of the most significant additions of the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage over recent years. All items of the collection originate from private collections of Western Europe and America.

In total, the collection numbers over 150 items - not only Urartian but also Caucasian pre-Urartian. The exhibition devoted to the 90th anniversary of the Oriental Department highlights 30 of the most significant Urartian items.

All of them are well preserved and need little restoration. Among the exhibited items the items made of bronze prevail. Urartian belts are particularly interesting: prior to acquisition of the new collection, the Hermitage collection had only one belt of this kind. The exhibition features belts of various width with characteristic images - scenes of feast and donations, scenes of hunting, fantastic creatures, as well as details of equine equipment decorated with inscriptions and images, votive plates, bracelets, pins, pectoral.

One of the collection highlights is a bronze helmet with a fulgurous symbol on a forehead part. It is believed that it is a symbol of Urartian god of war Teisheba.

The exhibition is supplemented with a selection of ceramics items - bright large vessels with painting.

The new collection is of high significance to the Oriental Department. The major part of the Hermitage collection of Urartian antiquities originates from excavations of Karmir-Blur hill which, due to long-term research by Boris Piotrovsky, is well examined and is a reference monument of Urartian culture. The newly acquired collection will provide for the presentation at the permanent exposition of masterpieces of Urartian art from other places in future.

The exhibition curator is Natalia Kozlova, head of the  Oriental Department of the State Hermitage.

Pins 7th century B.C. Larger view

Vessel Late 9th - 7th century B.C. Larger view

Helmet
8th century B.C.
Larger view

Belt (fragment)
Late 9th - early 8th century B.C.
Larger view

Detail of horse armour: left side blinker
8th century B.C.
Larger view

Horse bits
Late 9th - early 8th century B.C.
Larger view