Crimson Code of Berat arrives in Bulgaria

FOCUS News Agency
14/8/2011

Crimson Code of Berat will arrive in Bulgaria. This will be one of the exhibits displayed in the exhibition themed The Brilliance of Byzantium, which will accompany the XXII International Congress of Byzantine Studies, hosted by Sofia from August 22 to August 27. The exhibition will show 121 decorated Greek Codes, 86 of which are from Bulgaria and 35 – from abroad. They are from the Benaki museum in Athens, the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and National Museum in Ohrid, the State Archives – Tirana and three manuscripts from the Kalenic monastery, Serbia, as well as from the National Library in Belgrade and the Museum of Serbian Orthodox Church, the director of the National Gallery for Foreign Art Irina Mutafchieva said.
Two crimson codes from Tirana, dated back to the VI and IX century, found after World War II and restored in Berat in China, will be exposed during the exposition. One of them (Beratinus I), containing Gospel texts dates back to the reign of Justinian (VI century) and is colored in purple. In purple but with red violet hue is the gospel Beratinus II dated back to IX century. Professor Aksiniya Dzhurova, co-chairperson of the Organisational Committee of the XXII International Congress of Byzantine Studies confirmed their participation in the exhibition.

Purple codes are stored in the State Archives of Albania in Tirana and their participation in the prestigious exhibition in Sofia has been commented in Berat since November last year. Away such valuable exhibits is subject to the intergovernmental level, the Bulgarian government recently granted state guarantees for the items of the exhibition that will take part in Sofia’s exhibition.
In November 2010 curator of the church – museum St. Onouphrios told the then minister without portfolio Bozidar Dimitrov during his visit to Albania for the discovering of the document known as the Crimson Code of Berat and its restoration. The church in which it was found now stores fragments of the relics of two of the Seven Saints – St. Naum and St. Angelariy, the disciples of Cyril and Methodius.

Right in the iconostasis of the church St. Onouphrios, today a cultural monument, is standing icon of the Seven Saints. That church is now a museum and gallery in which there are exposed Christian icons, the work of local painter – Onouphrios (XVI century, Onouphrios Neokastrities). Crimson Code is found in studies of the altar of the church. Because of the good relations between Albania and China at that time, valuable documents were restored in China. Today at the altar of the church where was found one of them is marked with a special plate.

Little Art Gallery displays icons and liturgical books found in Albania. Some of them are accurately dated, others only suggest the time they dated. One of the icons depicts the Last Supper, where the author has his own style – the objects on the table show the presence of Muslims in Berat.
Since 2008 Berat is a city protected by UNESCO. In recent years much has been done to preserve the old part of town. Special task was – to pay attention to the facades of buildings, and that – to put cables underground.

The name of the city, which is found in Bulgarian chronicles, is Beligrad.
Berat was the center of administrative district Kutmichevitza, was part of the First and Second Bulgarian kingdom. According to the hagiography of Saint Clement of Ohrid – namely in the area Kutmichevitza he developed his literary work, which trains priests of the Bulgarian alphabet.
Albania – Known and Unknown is the theme of the exhibition, which will be presented at the Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski during Byzantium Congress, another opportunity to meet with the heritage of the Balkans.

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