Musorgsky's Gravestone hexos in icons

Thu Jan 24 14:50:02 UTC 2013

The hexagram is used extensively in Orthodox icons too…worth looking into that area of symbolism.

Kent 

Kent dur Russell, CEO & Curator

Museum of Russian Icons

203 Union Street, Clinton MA 01510 USA

TEL (978) 598 5000 x 12

FAX (978) 5985009

krussell at museumofrussianicons.org

www.museumofrussianicons.org <http://www.museumofrussianicons.org/> 

The mission of the Museum of Russian Icons is to enhance relations between Russia and the United States through the medium of art, especially Russian icons. 

From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list [mailto:SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU] On Behalf Of William Ryan
Sent: Thursday, January 24, 2013 6:15 AM
To: SEELANGS at LISTSERV.UA.EDU
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] Musorgsky's Gravestone

The hexagram is not by any means an exclusively Jewish symbol. Of the other uses of the symbol the masonic seems the most likely in the case of Pushkin and Musorgskii. There is a fair amount of conspiracy theory and antisemitic stuff about this on Yandex. One also has to wonder how many people design their own monuments and gravestones.
Will

On 24/01/2013 00:35, William Nickell wrote:

	I am not an expert on this, but was curious.  A bit of browsing on the web turned up similar stars on the graves of Pushkin and Nekrasov, and conjectures that they appear there in a Judeo-Christian context. 

	Bill Nickell

	William Nickell

	Asst. Professor of Russian Literature

	Dept. of Slavic Languages & Literatures

	University of Chicago

	On Jan 23, 2013, at 4:03 PM, Olga Meerson wrote:

	�� ������ ������� ������������ ����� ������ �������� ������ = "so that the posterity of the Orthodox [Christians] would know the past [destiny] of their native land,' not "And thus the future generations/Will of their faith and people learn the past."  The presence of Mussirgsky's Christian Orthodox identity, at least insofar as his task parallels Pimen's (as a co-chronicler with, say, Pushkin), is ensured by these words. The star of David may reflect the fact that Mussorgsky had many sources for his music in Jewish pubs, or that the motifs interested him at least as much as the native Russian themes and motifs (cf. Pictures at an Exhibition), as later they would interest Shostakovich. On the other hand, the star may mean the same thing it does in the portal of the Florentine Church dedicated to the Holy Cross (the Santa Croce)---namely, be at least as Christian in its symbolism as it would be Jewish for the Modern times. This happens to many other symbols and notions---virtually all of them in the Old Testament :)

	On Mon, Jan 21, 2013 at 2:31 PM, Patricia A. Krafcik <krafcikp at evergreen.edu> wrote:

	Dear SEELANGERS:

	Might anyone know why the composer Modest Musorgsky's gravestone does not sport a cross or any evident Christian or Orthodox Christian symbol, but instead what appears a Star of David above the engraving of his head? Gravestones
	of other Russian composers routinely included Christian symbols, but not his (unless there is something I cannot discern in the photos). The monument, according to biographers, was designed by an architect by the name Bogomolov, and the bust by a young sculptor by the name of Ginzburg. On the stone is an inscription of two lines from Pimen's narrative (from "Boris Godunov"): "And thus the future generations/Will of their faith and people learn the past."

	Thanks in advance for your thoughts and perhaps specific information about this issue.
	--Patricia Krafcik
	The Evergreen State College
	krafcikp at evergreen.edu

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