FUNERARY CUSTOMS IN THE KINGDOM OF KARTLI IN THE ANTIQUE-EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD

Abstract

This paper is devoted to the study of the cult of the dead, and of the process from death to 
burial, in the Kingdom of Kartli (Iberia) in the Antique and Early Medieval periods; it is the first 
part of a series of separate articles. The introduction presents the general historical background 
of the subject, from the fall of the Kingdom of Colchis to the formation of the Kingdom of Kartli, 
and from the pagan pantheon to the establishment of Christianity. In examining the subject, 
attention is focused on the significance of funerary monuments, whose analysis is essential for 
drawing objective conclusions in the study of the ethnocultural processes and the pre-Christian 
ritual in the Kingdom of Kartli. Accordingly, the article emphasizes the archaeologically attested 
types of burial, the position and orientation of the deceased, grave goods, and, more generally, 
the elements associated with the honouring and burial of the dead.
The second part of the paper is devoted to a critical review and clarification of the Georgian 
terminology relating to the burial of the dead (burial rite, interment rite, and individual, paired, 
family, and multiple burials).
The material studied demonstrates that the funerary monuments of the Kingdom of Kartli 
reflect a consistent development of beliefs and ritual practices connected with the cult of the 
dead during the transition from paganism to Christianity. The critical revision of the terminology 
of the burial rite, in turn, lays the groundwork for further, more detailed, and methodologically 
more robust research, which will be continued in the subsequent articles of the series