Icons in Albania with a great historic value

TIRANA, Aug. 15 – Wooden icons in Albania date back to the 6th century when they were worked with such a quality that they have resisted long times and weather phenomenon, experts say. The oldest icons in Albania are those of Sh쮠M쳩 Digitria and Beautiful Doors found at a church near the Prespa lake belonging to the 12th century. In the 12-15th century period icons had such figures as the Saint Mehill at the Mborje church in Korca. They have artistic, historic, religious and national values testifying the country’s history and post-Bysantine continuity as a nation. There are well known icons of Onufri and his son Nikolla and those of the second post-Bysantine period represented from Zografet, Shpataraku, Anagnosti, etc. decorative icons like Saint Mary on the chair of the source in Korca and that of Saint Naum at the church of Sh쮠e Premtes in Lushnja are distinguishable from the time. Other names from the middle age are those of Qiprioti and David Selenica.
Since 1977 the icons are under the management of the Institute of the Monuments of Culture as they make up a colossal amount of the Albanian iconographic art. Starting from 1988 the Institute undertook a campaign to collect icons, rehabilitate and then show them to the public. Their greatest part also escaped the anarchy the country was engulfed in 1997 following the collapse of the pyramid investment schemes where Europe’s poorest population lost its life savings. In February 2000 a considerable number of the most distinguishable icons was transferred at a secret location to protect them.
Now they may be found at the Onufri museum in Berat, considered as their center in the country. It was built in 1985 at the Berat castle and shelters some 120 icons of great artistic, historical and documentary values. Some of the icons there are that of “Sh쮠Antoni” and “Gjon Pag컯ri” of Nikolla Onufri, “Sh쮠M쳩a with Christ” anonymous from the 16th century, “Sh쮠Mihali” of 17th century, “Seven Saints” of 1733, etc.
The National Museum of Middle Aged time in Korca has some 6,000 icons and 1,000 metal and wooden objects of some 150 Albanian authors. Some 30 icons are rehabilitated annually and more than 300 are chemically treated to preserve them. Many of them are made from Onufri, Zografi, Shpataraku, etc. another pavilion with icons is at the National Historic Museum in central Tirana since November 2000. it has some 80 icons of Onufri, Onufer Qiprioti, David Selenica, Zografi, Kostandin Shpataraku, Mihal Anagnosti, Vellezerit ȥtiri, etc. that is conceived as a big church starting with a great icon 13 meter long. Another group of icons stays at the National Gallery of Arts in Tirana and the National Museum Gjergj Kastrioti Scanderbeg in Kruja.
During the post-communist period after 1990 hundreds of icons have been stolen in the towns of Korca, Voskopoja, Delvina, Kruja, Saranda, Gjirokastra, Tirana etc and either sent abroad or sold secretly. One of the greatest thefts was that in 1998 of the 500-hundred years old icon of Saint Mary church in the south, a gift from Ali Pashe Tepelena to the villagers of Sopik for their loyalty. it was a view of Saint Mary and her son Jesus Christ engraved in nut wood and silver. It was discovered two and a half years later. According to the sayings it has been stolen many times, starting with the Turks more than a century ago.
There have also been some positive cases like that of the return to the Kruja museum of three icons stolen in 1995, but hundreds others are still ‘at large’ experts say.