The State Hermitage Museum Writes to Inform You

On March 23, 2013, the State Hermitage Museum hosted the transfer of a copy of an ancient bronze standard in the shape of an eagle to the Tugan Malsagov Ingush State Museum.

“The eagle” was discovered in the 19th century in the towered settlement of Erzi (which translates as “eagle”) in mountainous Ingushetia. The ornamentation, inscriptions and style of the sculpture make it a unique artifact.

There is an inscription in Arabic on the eagle’s neck which reads “In the name of Allah the All-Merciful, the All-Benevolent”, while the name of the master who made it (Suleiman) and the data of creation, 180 anno hegirae (796-797), is also stamped on it.

The figure of the eagle which was probably created in the center of the Caliphate (Iraq or Syria) was used as a water-bearer, and then made its way to the Caucasus, where it became the symbol of the local family group. In 1939, this artifact of Muslim art was transferred to the State Hermitage Museum.

A copy of “The eagle” made in accordance with all rules for producing copies in the Laboratory for Scientific Restoration of Precious Metals at the Hermitage was presented to the Head of the Republic of Ingushetia Yunus-bek Yevkurov by the General Director of the Museum Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky. This event was timed to coincide with the 243-year anniversary of the Ingush people’s voluntary entry into the Russian Empire.