“The Legacy of the Alans - Caucasian Weapons, Clothing and Household Artifacts”
The Exhibition Gallery of the Cascais Citadel Palace is presenting the exhibition “The Legacy of the Alans - Weapons, Clothing and Caucasian Household Artifacts”, about the people of Iranian origin who settled in the Caucasus region two millennia ago and arrived in the Iberian Peninsula at the beginning of the 5th century. This exhibition is organized by the D. Luís I Foundation, in collaboration with Cascais Town Hall.
The exhibition explores the link between the Ossetian-Alans, who still live in the Caucasus region today, and the original Alan peoples, whose history dates back to the 1st century AD. The exhibition features items from the collection of Ossetian businessman and philanthropist Vladislav Khabliev, who lives in Cascais. They include weapons, military ammunition, clothing, cavalry items, traditional handicrafts and everyday items from the North Caucasus and Transcaucasia (which today includes Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan) dating from the 17th to the 21st centuries.
As the pieces and artifacts in “The Legacy of the Alans - Weapons, Clothing and Caucasian Household Artifacts” show, the legacy of the Alan peoples endures through time and is still present today in the lifestyles, legends and traditions (dance, music, gastronomy, clothing and handicrafts) of the Ossetians, the modern Alans who live to the north of Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Around 408 AD, part of the Alans crossed Europe and reached the Iberian Peninsula. It was in the city of Pax Julia, today Beja, that they established the seat of the Alans kingdom in Portugal. In addition to the original pieces, the exhibition will show replicas of 5th century weapons and costumes of the legendary King Addac (also referred to as Átax or Ataces) and his wife Cindazunda, a princess of the rival Suevi people, who occupied a territory that extended between the south of the River Douro and the Carthaginian area (on the Spanish coast) and who, legend has it, led the rebuilding of the city of Coimbra, which had been destroyed by years of conflict, and the founding of Alenquer, whose name means “Temple of the Alans”.
Some believe that the story of King Addac's marriage to the princess Cindazunda is immortalized in Coimbra's heraldry: on the city's coat of arms, the crowned female figure is Cindazunda; the lion, the timbrel of the Alans, and the dragon, of the Suevi. In the middle is the chalice that represents the union between two peoples who were once enemies, united after a conflict so intense that the waters of the Mondego were dyed red. Still in the 5th century, the Iberian Alans were forced to migrate to North Africa due to the Arab invasions. Despite the short duration of the Alano kingdom in Lusitania, its presence is evidenced by important archaeological marks at sites such as the castles of Torres Vedras and Almourol.
Find out more on the Dom Luís I Foundation website: HERE
More information: 214 815 660 | geral@fdl.pt
Organization: Cascais City Council | Dom Luís I Foundation | Museum Quarter
