Interview by Maria Sidelnikova, Grozny-Moscow. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
The National Museum of Chechnya has marked its 90th anniversary. It was founded on November 7, 1924. It had a big collection of belongings of heroes and veterans of the Caucasian War and other wars, national firearms and melee weapons, sabers, daggers, breastplates, firelocks and pistols decorated with gold and silver, carvings and niello.
It used to be the largest museum collection in the North Caucasus. Candidate of History Islam Khamurzayev, a senior scientist of the National Museum of Chechnya, has described the life of the museum today in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.
- Islam Sayidovich, how was the museum collection formed, how did it survive the complicated times of Chechnya?
- The National Museum of the Chechen Republic in the North Caucasus is one of the oldest. The museum was founded in 1924. As we know from history, holdings of the period were mostly confiscated: belongings of rich merchants, industrialists. Nationalization followed the post-revolutionary period. Until the Great Patriotic War, the holdings were growing, the museum was expanding.
After 1944, the Chechen-Ingush Local Lore Museum ceased to exist, it was transformed into the Museum of the Georgian Oblast. A lot associated with Chechens and Ingushetians disappeared. After 1957, when the Chechen-Ingush ASSR was restored, the Chechen-Ingush Local Lore Museum was reestablished. Holdings of the museum were filled by the leading museums of the USSR: the Hermitage, the Tretyakov Gallery.
Grozny had a local lore museum, the Peter Zakharov Museum of Visual Arts. All the leading museums in the North Caucasus and Russia were envious of its collections. We had an enormous collection and very rare paintings: Ayvazovsky, Roubaud, Gagarin.
Until 1990, the museum, as a cultural center, had many branches in highland Chechnya, the Nadterechny District, the L.N. Tolstoy Museum in Starogladovskaya Village, the Lermontov Museum in Paraboch Village.
After the fall of the USSR, there was no time for museums, education or culture. Museums fell into disrepair. Jokhar Dudayev came to power in Chechnya. The period had a great impact on the museum of our republic in general.
During the First Chechen War, the main strike was made on the center of the city of Grozny, where the museums were. The local lore museum was almost pillaged, the Zakharov Museum of Visual Arts was badly damaged, paintings were damaged. In 1995 they were sent for restoration to the ROSIZO State Museum and Exhibition Center.
In 1999, the Second Chechen Campaign started, and again, museums were damaged. Salaries were not paid, but the staff of the museums were working like on a mission.
After 2000 there was a question of whether there would be any Grozny. The capital was planned to be moved to Gudermes. But first President of the Chechen Republic Akhmat-Haji Kadyrov, a Hero of Russia, said firmly that the city would stay, it would not be renamed and it would be restored where it was.
Restoration of Grozny started. Akhmat-Haji’s son took the reigns of power after his father’s tragic death. Today we have a beautiful museum, a beautiful city.
- How many people work in the museum?
- Together with branches, there is a total of 100 people. We have three doctors of science, we are expecting a fourth one, six candidates of historical sciences. Almost everyone here has a history degree, so we have enough skilled workers. But it is always very hard to catch up. We always try, make visits, improve the qualifications of our workers. Many museums visit us.
- Who in particular visits you?
- First of all, we have good-neighbourly relations with North Ossetia, the director of the National Museum of North Ossetia-Alania, Larisa Tsekoyeva. Dagestan always responds. We are currently holding a conference attended by the director of the Rasul Gamzatov Museum, the daughter of Rasul Gamzatov. There are also Rostov, Stavropol Territory, the Saint-Petersburg Russian Museum, the Museum of the East.
- When was this building constructed?
- It is an absolutely new building. We moved in 1.5 years ago.
- What does the exposition include?
- Like all museums in the world, we have an archeological hall, an ethnographic hall, an exhibition of ethnography of Chechens and all peoples living in the Chechen Republic is displayed there, we have a very big gallery hall where personal exhibitions of artists are held. The paintings damaged during the war are shown in the central hall. They returned after the ROSIZO restoration and got their deserved place in the big hall of the National Museum.
- What exhibits does the museum boast?
- I have been taking an interest in history since 5th grade, I was studying in the “Young Local Historian” club of the Chechen-Ingush University. I saw a portrait of Zakharov for the first time then. A self-portrait of the great Russian portraitist, Russian in particular, because he was the only child who survived when the Dadi-Yurt Village was burned to the ground in the Yermolov period. The child survived, he was saved by Private Zakharov, he gave him his name, education, and he became a great Russian artist. We are very proud that our compatriot became so famous and glorified Russian culture.
- How many exhibits do you have?
- What there was and what there is should not be compared. But holdings grow. Someone brings family relics. For example, old people know that it is better for something to be at the museum than lying and getting covered in dust. Many holdings were lost. We have about 30,000 units stored today.
- What highlight has joined the holding?
- We have melee weapons in the collection. Many people arriving ask such question: “Why do you have so many melee weapons?” I tell them: “You are in the Caucasus, we are highlanders. Highlanders have been paying special attention to weapons since olden times. It does not mean that he was being threatening, he was just making it clear that he was armed.”
- An indicator of status?
- Yes, status. Be it an Adyg, Kabardian, Balkarian, Ingush, Ossetian, Chechen or a Dagestani – all highlanders loved weapons and carried them. It was a daily attribute. There were ceremonial and daily weapons. The collection includes two objects: a dagger and a saber of a very famous master.
We have a saber that belonged to a famous political, state and public figure of Chechnya, Abdul-Mejir (Tapi) Chermoyev. The saber was made and given to Chermoyev by a notable Chechen swordsmith Bashirov from the Stariye Atagi Village. We have a dagger made in 1901 by a Chechen bladesmith Chilla Murtazaliyev from Doykur-aul.
- Do locals visit the museum?
- Many even book tickets. Many pupils, students, pupils with teachers and curators from neighbouring republics visit us. Guests from Dagestan are the most common here. There were pupils, students, tourists from the Khabarovsk Territory. Many want to see with their own eyes, understand what the peaceful city of Grozny is like.
- Do you do any research?
- We work with expositions associated with a certain hero or period. For example, we had the Brest Fortress exhibition. Malika Gortikova, a very skilled ethnographer, runs the topic associated with the oil industry and merchantry in Grozny.
- What do most people want to see?
- Ethnography. The Chechen museum takes part in all projects in Russia. We took out many of our exhibits to Crimea. We visited Sochi, brought them there too. In short, there are things to move out and see.
The National Museum of Chechnya has marked its 90th anniversaryInterview by Maria Sidelnikova, Grozny-Moscow. Exclusively for Vestnik KavkazaThe National Museum of Chechnya has marked its 90th anniversary. It was founded on November 7, 1924. It had a big collection of belongings of heroes and veterans of the Caucasian War and other wars, national firearms and melee weapons, sabers, daggers, breastplates, firelocks and pistols decorated with gold and silver, carvings and niello.It used to be the largest museum collection in the North Caucasus. Candidate of History Islam Khamurzayev, a senior scientist of the National Museum of Chechnya, has described the life of the museum today in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.- Islam Sayidovich, how was the museum collection formed, how did it survive the complicated times of Chechnya?- The National Museum of the Chechen Republic in the North Caucasus is one of the oldest. The museum was founded in 1924. As we know from history, holdings of the period were mostly confiscated: belongings of rich merchants, industrialists. Nationalization followed the post-revolutionary period. Until the Great Patriotic War, the holdings were growing, the museum was expanding.After 1944, the Chechen-Ingush Local Lore Museum ceased to exist, it was transformed into the Museum of the Georgian Oblast. A lot associated with Chechens and Ingushetians disappeared. After 1957, when the Chechen-Ingush ASSR was restored, the Chechen-Ingush Local Lore Museum was reestablished. Holdings of the museum were filled by the leading museums of the USSR: the Hermitage, the Tretyakov Gallery.Grozny had a local lore museum, the Peter Zakharov Museum of Visual Arts. All the leading museums in the North Caucasus and Russia were envious of its collections. We had an enormous collection and very rare paintings: Ayvazovsky, Roubaud, Gagarin.Until 1990, the museum, as a cultural center, had many branches in highland Chechnya, the Nadterechny District, the L.N. Tolstoy Museum in Starogladovskaya Village, the Lermontov Museum in Paraboch Village.After the fall of the USSR, there was no time for museums, education or culture. Museums fell into disrepair. Jokhar Dudayev came to power in Chechnya. The period had a great impact on the museum of our republic in general.During the First Chechen War, the main strike was made on the center of the city of Grozny, where the museums were. The local lore museum was almost pillaged, the Zakharov Museum of Visual Arts was badly damaged, paintings were damaged. In 1995 they were sent for restoration to the ROSIZO State Museum and Exhibition Center.In 1999, the Second Chechen Campaign started, and again, museums were damaged. Salaries were not paid, but the staff of the museums were working like on a mission.After 2000 there was a question of whether there would be any Grozny. The capital was planned to be moved to Gudermes. But first President of the Chechen Republic Akhmat-Haji Kadyrov, a Hero of Russia, said firmly that the city would stay, it would not be renamed and it would be restored where it was.Restoration of Grozny started. Akhmat-Haji’s son took the reigns of power after his father’s tragic death. Today we have a beautiful museum, a beautiful city.- How many people work in the museum?- Together with branches, there is a total of 100 people. We have three doctors of science, we are expecting a fourth one, six candidates of historical sciences. Almost everyone here has a history degree, so we have enough skilled workers. But it is always very hard to catch up. We always try, make visits, improve the qualifications of our workers. Many museums visit us.- Who in particular visits you?- First of all, we have good-neighbourly relations with North Ossetia, the director of the National Museum of North Ossetia-Alania, Larisa Tsekoyeva. Dagestan always responds. We are currently holding a conference attended by the director of the Rasul Gamzatov Museum, the daughter of Rasul Gamzatov. There are also Rostov, Stavropol Territory, the Saint-Petersburg Russian Museum, the Museum of the East.- When was this building constructed?- It is an absolutely new building. We moved in 1.5 years ago.- What does the exposition include?- Like all museums in the world, we have an archeological hall, an ethnographic hall, an exhibition of ethnography of Chechens and all peoples living in the Chechen Republic is displayed there, we have a very big gallery hall where personal exhibitions of artists are held. The paintings damaged during the war are shown in the central hall. They returned after the ROSIZO restoration and got their deserved place in the big hall of the National Museum.- What exhibits does the museum boast?- I have been taking an interest in history since 5th grade, I was studying in the “Young Local Historian” club of the Chechen-Ingush University. I saw a portrait of Zakharov for the first time then. A self-portrait of the great Russian portraitist, Russian in particular, because he was the only child who survived when the Dadi-Yurt Village was burned to the ground in the Yermolov period. The child survived, he was saved by Private Zakharov, he gave him his name, education, and he became a great Russian artist. We are very proud that our compatriot became so famous and glorified Russian culture.- How many exhibits do you have?- What there was and what there is should not be compared. But holdings grow. Someone brings family relics. For example, old people know that it is better for something to be at the museum than lying and getting covered in dust. Many holdings were lost. We have about 30,000 units stored today.- What highlight has joined the holding?- We have melee weapons in the collection. Many people arriving ask such question: “Why do you have so many melee weapons?” I tell them: “You are in the Caucasus, we are highlanders. Highlanders have been paying special attention to weapons since olden times. It does not mean that he was being threatening, he was just making it clear that he was armed.”- An indicator of status?- Yes, status. Be it an Adyg, Kabardian, Balkarian, Ingush, Ossetian, Chechen or a Dagestani – all highlanders loved weapons and carried them. It was a daily attribute. There were ceremonial and daily weapons. The collection includes two objects: a dagger and a saber of a very famous master.We have a saber that belonged to a famous political, state and public figure of Chechnya, Abdul-Mejir (Tapi) Chermoyev. The saber was made and given to Chermoyev by a notable Chechen swordsmith Bashirov from the Stariye Atagi Village. We have a dagger made in 1901 by a Chechen bladesmith Chilla Murtazaliyev from Doykur-aul.- Do locals visit the museum?- Many even book tickets. Many pupils, students, pupils with teachers and curators from neighbouring republics visit us. Guests from Dagestan are the most common here. There were pupils, students, tourists from the Khabarovsk Territory. Many want to see with their own eyes, understand what the peaceful city of Grozny is like.- Do you do any research?- We work with expositions associated with a certain hero or period. For example, we had the Brest Fortress exhibition. Malika Gortikova, a very skilled ethnographer, runs the topic associated with the oil industry and merchantry in Grozny.- What do most people want to see?- Ethnography. The Chechen museum takes part in all projects in Russia. We took out many of our exhibits to Crimea. We visited Sochi, brought them there too. In short, there are things to move out and
