Was there Muromets?

In the XIX century, historians believed the mythical hero Ilya of Murom reasons were compelling: his name is not mentioned in ancient chronicles, and in some epics, he is called ' Cossack ', sometimes ' the Don Cossacks ', which makes such epic tales present - in fact lived in the epic, Ilya .

But in the last century image of Elijah proved to be more popular: in one of the epic hero quarrels with the prince of Kiev, and, therefore, Soviet historians saw it as proof of the eternal struggle against the oppressed class of gentlemen. The result is a film ' Ilya of Murom ', which is the real portrait of an ancient rusichi as far as ' Ivan the Terrible ' Eisenstein on the historical John IV.
The debate about whether there was Ilya really could go on for very long if it were not for the scientific research conducted in 1989-1992 in Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. The fact that in the Caves Monastery of more than hundreds of relics of the ancient saints are buried and the remains of a certain ' Elijah of Murom city '. That these remains, along with dozens of others, have been investigated a group of scientists.
' The studies were conducted for three years, and they were integrated. They involved scientists from different disciplines. Were members of the Kiev Medical Institute and departments of forensic medicine, anatomy, radiology, biochemistry, hygiene. Of course, the employees involved, and the Institute of Geology Academy of Sciences, and in this institute conducted a study on the dating of the remains ' - says Professor Boris Mickle, an active participant in scientific investigation of the relics of the monastery of saints, now head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of the National Medical University named after AS. A. Bogomoletz. One of the main scientific sensations are results of the study of the remains of Ilya of Murom.
Boris V. give a word: ' Let us remember the epic. There he is described as heroic people build. Check. The length of the body, that is, growth, -177 cm. For the period of time, it was a tall man, because the bulk of the population were below the. For example, the growth of other saints of the monastery -160 - 165 cm. Then - on the bones of a mummy is very well developed so-called tuberosity. And we know that the better man in life developed the muscles, the more it will be these tuberosity. That is, he had a well developed muscular system. In addition, the X-ray of the skull were found changes in a brain region called the ' sella '. These changes are characteristic of acromegaly, akromegaloidnogo accent. People in the state of acromegaly have a disproportionate part of the body. At all times there are people with such symptoms, talk about them - ' slash seven feet at the shoulders ' in Ukrainian referred to as ... They have big legs, big head, that is kind of heroic. Coincides with the description of the appearance of the epic? .

We look beyond. According to the epics, he '33 lay on the stove, then came some beggars perekhozhie that he was healed, and he went to protect the Russian land. According to the same X-ray studies, he had a particular disease - spondylarthrosis.

In the description of radiologists stated: ' flattening of the fifth lumbar vertebral body, the presence of osteophytes in the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, as well as the connection arcuate appendages of the fifth and fourth lumbar vertebrae suggest that during the life of this man suffered spondyloarthrosis '. As the disease symptoms similar to sciatica, and in this state, people have limited mobility. Over a period of time a person is not moving or in part is not moving. 33, as described in the epics - probably hyperbole. But the fact that it is a time he did not move - that's for sure. And then came those grandparents, apparently - bone setters. And then he went. In our time, such diseases are treated massages, wellness services, but a good chiropractor may straighten vertebrae and even cure human.

And another argument - this is the age of burial, dating XI or XII century. With all these options we may assume that these might indeed belong to Ilya Muromets '.
Professor Mickle says that the process of research has made him an indelible impression then: ' It was a unique scientific data, no one had to work with such a. In addition, always thought that these might - falsification, but it turned out that the epics were based on real events '. Another important feature of the research he calls the coordinated work of the scientists: ... Worked very easily and with enthusiasm, if not with pleasure ...

- I think that Laura monks would say that the Pechersk saints to help you in this study with their prayers, - I notice Boris Mikhailovich.
- Can be, - he says.

But even if the scientific evidence that these remains belong to the ancient monastery of the Russian soldier, how do we know that this is the epic Ilya of Murom? .
From the standpoint of science the main argument are primarily historical mention of the fact that the Pechersk monastery relics of Ilya of Murom. The first such evidence related to the turn of the century XVI-XV1I. For example, in 1638, published in the book the monk Athanasios Kalnofoyskogo ' Teraturgima ' among the saints Pechersk monastery mentioned ' the holy monk Ilya, who was a simple folk in vain Chobotkom calls ' a travel diary in German diplomat Erich Lyasoty, which in 1594 went to Kiev, we meet two . One - the Cathedral of St. Sophia: ... He was a noble hero, or as they say, hero. The story about him a lot of fables. The tomb is now destroyed by this '.

Others - the relics in the underground Caves Monastery: ' There is also a giant, or knight, called Chobotka. It is said that he was attacked by many enemies one at a time when he put on his boots. And since a hurry, he could not grasp any other weapons, then started to defend the other boot, which has not yet put on, and they beat all, from what was a nickname '. It is interesting that ' this giant ' seen in the same cave ten years earlier Lyasoty merchant Martin Groenewegen. The reason why, unlike Lyasoty, the monk Athanasius denies the identity of Elijah and Chobotka, historians see the confusion or at the very Lyasoty, or a possible transfer of the relics of the hero of St. Sophia Cathedral in the Monastery of the Caves.
' A large number of ancient manuscripts has been lost, and the XVII century, when Ukraine began to develop rapidly typography - a kind of milestone. Some historical events that were not extant in manuscript, believed to be accurate, but are known from the printed books of the XVII century ' - says the historian Vladislav Woodpeckers, the author of several books on the Orthodox shrines of Ukraine, Head of Department ' Kyiv underground ' Museum of the History of Kiev. According to him, books of this period are particularly valuable for the study of the history of Caves Monastery, where a fire in 1718 was lost a huge library.
In later times the mention of the relics of the hero of Elijah in the Kiev Caves are found more often. And one of them - are widely known and often quoted in the church- historical literature, evidence of the Moscow Old Believer priest John Lukyanov, left in 1701: ' We have seen the same here hrabrago Warrior Elijah of Murom is imperishable under cover of gold, Thou the current growth of large individuals. His hand left broken spear, all know the ulcer on the hand '.

However, if you try to get a complete picture of the life of hero epics, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish truth from fiction. ' In the epics about Ilya, said Woodpeckers - two historical persons merged into one - a Kiev Prince Vladimir the Red Sun, and who lived a century after Prince Vladimir Monomakh. Still, the epic - a folk epic, where the actual episodes over time acquire fiction '. The same is said Nestor and Archimandrite ( Somenok ), professor of Kiev Theological Academy and Seminary, chairman of the Church Historical Society named Monk Nestor the Chronicler: ... People always want to be heroes '.
In the XIX century historian. F. Miller, for example, suggested that Nightingale-robber was an ordinary gangster who received his nickname for the ability to whistle well, and only the national epos assigns it to whistle by Hurricane. The same historian gives an explanation of the strange episode in some of the epics of the hero, when Ilya was angry at the prince, allegedly shooting at a church domes. Miller draws attention to the fact that during the siege of Novgorod in the XII century, one of the princes, shooting in the besieged city, got into an icon. The gunman was named in the annals of ' Muromets ', that is, from the city of Murom. From this scholar suggests that the same nickname went from folk tales in the annals of the ancient hero. By contrast, modern historians believe that this particular episode, like many other inventions, served as a weighty obstacle to making the lives of Elijah canonical.

' Judging by the fact that until the XIX century, preserved wooden board to make the engraved image of St. Elias in the printed ' Crypt Patericon ' Laura monks in the XVII century, supposed to make life of the ascetic. But the engraving was not included in the book, probably, faced with the scarcity of reliable news, making the lives of the monks put off until future times ' - says Vladislav Woodpeckers.
In other words, honoring Elijah as a saint began in the late Middle Ages when the Church had a huge impact on the population and not in need of folk heroes among their saints. Therefore, there was no need to increase its influence if it is so great.

In ancient books Ilya called differently: that Muromets, the Muravleninom then Murovlinom.
Ph.D. in Geography Hvedchenya Sergei, who wrote a book about Ilya of Murom, explains the difference in nicknames holy warrior that Ilya actually comes not from Murom, and from the Chernigov princedom - the city Moroviyska (which was first mentioned in chronicles in 1139 ).

Incidentally, in the area of ​​the current Kozelets Chernihiv region, and today there is the village of Moore. Sergei Hvedchenya recalls that in some epics, Ilya matins in church listening to his native city, and the evening - in the capital city of Kiev. Distance from Moore to Kiev today - about 90 miles, while from the Murom - about 1500 kilometers. By this logic, Ilya probably born in the territory of modern Chernihiv region.

However, this hypothesis about the home of Elijah is not shared by all historians. Hvedchenya about it observes the distinction of being the birthplace of our Hercules challenged by different cities, as in the case of the Greek hero of himself.

Much of the life of Ilya of Murom is still a mystery. For example, it is very difficult to determine the exact years of the life of ancient hero. According to the testimony of Athanasius Kalnofoyskogo, Murom dead for 450 years before Athanasius in 1638 published his book. Therefore, historians have simply taken away from 450 years in 1638 and received the 1188. If this date is true, then what if Prince Vladimir mention the epic, as Vladimir the Baptist died in 1015, and the Vladimir Monomakh - in 1125?.

Remain open, and many other questions. More precisely, you can not talk about the life of a hero, and his death. Professor Mickle believes that Elijah died during the battle. ' He has a wound in the projection area of the heart, penetrating the chest cavity. Rather, he died of wounds. In addition, he had a broken right collarbone. Broken were the second and third rib, radiologists found calluses. That is, these fractures have been received during his lifetime, in some battles, and then healed. It is in such cases are formed calluses. Clearly visible wound on his hand, apparently, also from some of knives - stabbing the object plane '.

The paucity of reliable information has never been the basis of skepticism as to whether the church or other holy.

' It happens that the holy ascetic reach us doling out information. But with them we inherit from the past tradition of veneration of the saint of God reflected in the written materials. At the same time we realize that the birth of the tradition of contemporaries had a more detailed data about the ascetic and questioned the validity of honor ' - says Vladislav Woodpeckers. So what happened with Ilya Muromets - tradition appeared before a scientific explanation. But science has finally proved a tradition.
This view is shared by Nestor and Archimandrite ( Somenok ): ' In the ancient tradition of honoring a saint Ilya of Murom. And lives did not have many of the ancient saints, in particular, and Metropolitan Hilarion, the author of ' The words of the Law and Grace ''.

In addition, a serious argument in favor of holiness is the very fact that the power of Elijah rested in the monastery caves where men do not usually buried, whatever may be their outstanding services to the Fatherland. ' The fact that he went to the monastery, said that Elijah is not linked to the heroic past. His soul was stronger than his heroic body ' - says Archimandrite Nestor.
But the most important outcome of studies debunking the myth historians believe that the church allegedly uses the authority of the national hero. ' For a long time it was believed that these relics - the result of conscious or unconscious errors, but here it is science proves the truth of the ancient tradition ' - says Vladislav Woodpeckers first impressions after the scientists working in the monastery caves. They have caused surprise not only scientific data on the relics of Ilya of Murom, and chemical analysis of the world, escaping from the heads of the martyrs, which are stored in the Far Caves. But that 's another story.

Author: in. Golovin.
Source: ' An interesting paper. Mysteries of History '№ 14 2010.

Permanent address.
News from Skypecine. com.