The Epitaph of Gllavenica is a 14th century epitaph

Epitaph

An epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial...

, written on a shroud

Shroud

Shroud usually refers to an item, such as a cloth, that covers or protects some other object. The term is most often used in reference to burial sheets, winding-cloths or winding-sheets, such as the famous Shroud of Turin or Tachrichim that Jews are dressed in for burial...

, and embroidered by a monk named Savia from Ballsh

Ballsh

-Overview:The city's surrounding fields are rich in crude petroleum and are dotted by a series of oil wells established during the communist dictatorship. Only a fraction of these wells are operating today, but the city includes a working refinery, and outputs of naphthas are significant...

, Albania

Albania

Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

. The shroud is made of silk, linen and gold, and symbolizes the burial cloth of Christ, used in Orthodox Good Friday's processions.

Technically, stylistically and in the decorative motifs, it is one of the most perfect artifacts of this genre in the Balkans. The Epitaph represents the dead Christ lying on a linen, Saint Mary, John

John

John is a common English name and surname:* John * John John may also refer to:-Religious figures:* John Hyrcanus, ruler of Judea 134–104 BC...

, other Four Evangelists

Four Evangelists

In Christian tradition the Four Evangelists are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament that bear the following titles:*Gospel according to Matthew*Gospel according to Mark...

, prophets and angels with spread wings. It was commissioned by the Albanian

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

 ruler Gjergj Arianiti in 1373.

In 1994, the shroud was stolen from the National Historical Museum of Albania

National Historical Museum (Albania)

The National Historical Museum in Tirana, Albania, is the country's largest museum. It was opened on 28 October 1981 and is 27,000 square metres in size, while 18,000 square metres are available for expositions. The museum was designed by Albanian architect, Enver Faja.The construction of the...

 in Tirana

Tirana

Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...

.

In 2005 an international symposium assessed that the shroud should be restaured for the amount of 25-50k Euros because it risks to be irreparably deteriorated and damaged from the lights of the Albanian National Museum.

Sources

• Stamati, Frederik, Acta Studia Albanica (2/2005) The Epitaph of Gllavenica: New Data Emerging from the Technological Study