"ცხენის დაკურთხების" რიტუალი ხევსურეთში (ეთნოგრაფიული ლიტერატურისა და საარქივო ვიზუალური მასალის ანალიზის მიხედვით) / Horse Consecration Ritual in Khevsureti (According to the Analysis of Ethnographic Literature and Archival Visual Material)

In this article, I explore the “Horse Consecration” ritual, a significant funeral customonce prevalent in various regions of Georgia, with a focus on Khevsureti, a mountainousarea in eastern Georgia. This ritual involves locals mourning over the horse andpersonal belongings of deceased individuals particularly, young males. Through thispractice, we gain profound insights into the metaphysical worldviews, material culture,and customs of the vernacular mountainous community.Adopting a holistic approach, my analysis extends beyond ethnographicliterature to include archival written and visual materials. These materials are kept inthe archive of the Ivane Javakhishvili Institute of History and Ethnology, Georgia. Apivotal component of this study is the examination of black-and-white photographsfrom a 1947 ethnographic expedition, The photographs here vividly capture the keyelements of the ritual – mourners, the horse belonged to the deceased person, and his orher personal belongings. Due to the lack of information about these photographs, we donot know the exact data about where and when they were taken, that’s why additionalinformation and fieldwork reports about the 1947 ethnographic expedition were alsoanalyzed.We also argue that a holistic approach requires special attention to methodology,in this case – modern methods of visual analysis. Employing methodologies fromPauwels’ “An Integrated Conceptual Framework for Visual Social Research” andSebeok’s “An Introduction to Semiotics”, we interpret these historical images withintheir broader cultural and historical contexts. According to Sebeok, symbols in general(and in these images in particular) conventionally represent societal realities, indicatingthat the deceased’s horse, clothing, swords, and other items symbolize not only theindividual but also the local cultural ethos posthumously.Ultimately, this article highlights the “Horse Consecration” ritual as a windowinto the intricate fabric of Khevsureti’s cultural heritage, illustrating how materialobjects and mourning practices intertwine to reflect deeper vernacular societal valuesand belief systems.