Hermes in Tbilisi / Tbilissi

seen in Kote Afkhazi str. (former Leselidze street), Tbilisi. /
gesehen in der Kote Afkhazi-Str., (ehem. Leselidse-Str., Tbilissi.

ENGLISH:

Typical is the helmet with wings. The two snakes facing each other usually sling around a baton.
Hermes the protector of travellers, merchants and herdsmen, but also of thieves, art-sellers, of rhetoric, gymnastics and magic.

From the English wikipedia:
"Among these objects is a wide-brimmed hat, the petasos, widely used by rural people of antiquity to protect themselves from the sun, and that in later times was adorned with a pair of small wings; sometimes the hat is not present, and may have been replaced with wings rising from the hair. Another object is the Porta: a stick ... Early depictions of the staff show it as a baton stick topped by a golden way ... Later the staff had two intertwined snakes and sometimes it was crowned with a pair of wings and a ball, but the old form remained in use even when Hermes was associated with Mercury by the Romans.
Hyginus explained the presence of snakes, saying that Hermes was traveling in Arcadia when he saw two snakes intertwined in battle. He put the caduceus between them and parted, and so said his staff would bring peace.[141] The caduceus, historically, appeared with Hermes, and is documented among the Babylonians from about 3500 BC. The two snakes coiled around a stick was a symbol of the god Ningishzida, which served as a mediator between humans and the goddess Ishtar or the supreme Ningirsu. ... It was said to have the power to make people fall asleep or wake up, and also made peace between litigants, and is a visible sign of his authority, being used as a sceptre.
He was represented in doorways, possibly as an amulet of good fortune, or as a symbol of purification. The caduceus is not to be confused with the Rod of Asclepius, the patron of medicine and son of Apollo, which bears only one snake.  ... After the Renaissance the caduceus also appeared in the heraldic crests of several, and currently is a symbol of commerce.
His sandals, called pédila by the Greeks and talaria by the Romans, were made of palm and myrtle branches but were described as beautiful, golden and immortal, made a sublime art, able to take the roads with the speed of wind. Originally, they had no wings, but late in the artistic representations, they are depicted. In certain images, the wings spring directly from the ankles. Hermes has also been depicted with a purse or a bag in his hands, wearing a robe or cloak, which had the power to confer invisibility. His weapon was a sword of gold, which killed Argos; lent to Perseus to kill Medusa."

It seems likely that this house was erected by a merchant or art-seller.


DEUTSCH:

Typisch für Hermes der Helm mit Flügeln. Zwei Schlangen, die sich anschauen, findet man sonst eher um seinen Stab gewunden.
Hermes ist der Schutzgott der Reisenden, Kaufleute, Hirten, aber auch der Diebe und Kunsthändler, der Rhetorik, Gymnastik und sogar der Magie.
Aus der deutschsprachigen Wikipedia: 

"Bei den Griechen wurde Hermes meist jugendlich und bartlos, mit einem breitkrempigen Hut (Petasos), später einem geflügelten Helm, geflügelten Schuhen oder geflügelten Schultern und dem zaubermächtigen goldenen Hermesstab (griechisch Kerykeion, lateinisch Caduceus) dargestellt. Mit diesem kann Hermes einschläfern und Träume bewirken; der Stab ist eines seiner Attribute. Neben dem Stab, der von zwei einander anblickenden Schlangen umwunden ist, hält er auf römischen Darstellungen meistens einen Geldbeutel.
Er wird auch manchmal mit einer Schildkröte oder mit einem Widder dargestellt. Sofern die Abbildung einen bärtigen Hermes zeigt, ist der Bart spitz und nach vorne gekrümmt. Man sieht Hermes auch mit einer Sichel, mit Pfeife und Degen oder als Hirte mit Rind. Der Hut wird auch halb schwarz, halb weiß dargestellt, manchmal trägt er auch den Panzer der Schildkröte als Helm auf seinem Kopf."
Gut möglich, dass das Haus von einem Kaufmann oder Kunsthändler errichtet wurde.



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