St. Queen Ketevan’s Relics: Georgia

• 15 Jul 2021

Why in News

Recently, India has gifted one part of the holy relics of 17^th century St. Queen Ketevan to the Georgian government.

• These relics were gifted on the first ever visit of India’s External Affairs Minister to independent Georgia.
• Georgia is a strategically important country situated at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • Queen Ketevan was from Kakheti, a kingdom in eastern Georgia.
  • It is believed that, she was killed in 1624 in Shiraz (modern day Iran) for not converting to Islam.
  • The parts of her remains were brought to Goa by Augustinian monks in 1627.
  • The relics of the martyred Queen Ketevan were found by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in 2005 in the ruins of the Church of St. Augustine in Goa.
  • Many historical, religious and spiritual sentiments of the Georgian people are attached to St. Queen Ketevan.

Church of St. Augustine

• Church of St. Augustine is a ruined church complex located in Goa.
• The church was completed in 1602 by Augustinian monks who landed in Goa in 1587.
• The church was abandoned in 1835 after the Portuguese government of Goa began evicting many religious orders in Goa under its new repressive policies.
• The subsequent neglect caused the vault of the church to collapse in 1842.
• It is a part of the Churches and convents of Goa, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

• India-Georgia Relations:
  • Historical Background: Fables from India’s Panchtantra are believed to have influenced the Georgian folk legends.
    
    • Those links were further strengthened in medieval ages by missionaries, travelers, and traders.
  • Recent Visit: India was willing to do more in terms of investment in Georgia, which ranks highly in the ease of doing business index.
    
    • Georgia has also applied for EU (European Union) membership, which, if accepted, would give India another gateway to Europe, and a foothold in the Caucasus.
    • There is also a political significance of this visit, given the hostile relations between Russia and Georgia.
      
      • India has given clear signals to Russia that it was not happy with the recent visit of Russia’s foreign minister to Pakistan.

Caucasus

• Mountain system and region lying between the Black Sea (west) and the Caspian Sea (east) and occupied by Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia.

Source: TH