Peresopnytsia Gospel returns
The Peresopnytsia Gospel, one of the most significant manuscriptal specimens of the old Ukrainian literature and art, is returning to the place where it was created.
A facsimile copy of the book was produced with the support of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and was sent to Rivne oblast. The ceremony was held by the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Volodymyr.
Scholars call the Peresopnytsia Gospel a masterpiece of the manuscriptal art. Nothing can match it in beauty and richness. The book weighs over nine kilos and has refined and golden embellishments. It is a translation of the Gospel into the so-called simple language, which was close to the vernacular.
Archimandrite of the Monastery of the Mother of God Hryhorii worked on the translation from 1556 until 1561. He started this job in Dvirtsi (now in Khmelnytsa oblast) and finished it in Peresopnytsia, a former seat of the prince and now a township, which is located 30 kilometers from Rivne.
The Peresopnytsia Gospel has been moved around: it was stored in Pereiaslav Episcopal Throne of Hetman Ivan Mazepa and in the library of the Pereiaslav seminary. In the early 20th century it was transferred to the antiquities depositary in Poltava, and during World War II it was stored in Ufa.
Starting from 1947 it has been kept in the Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine. This gospel is also a political symbol of the Ukrainian nation. Its facsimile copy was given to Rivne region in the framework of the campaign “Returning to Motherland.”
Ukrainian film to vie for Golden Bear
The short film Deafness was shortlisted for the Berlin International Film Festival, which will take place on February 11–21. It is an 11-minute-long film by director Myroslav Slaboshpytsky and is part of the Morons: Arabesques cycle. Deafness is a social drama about an episode in the life of residents of a facility for people with impaired hearing, while the Morons: Arabesques cycle is a non-budget short film almanac by ambitious Ukrainian directors, who shoot films about ordinary people.
The project’s general producer is Volodymyr Tykhy, and its co-producer is the Arthouse Traffic company. The films are made in the FilmToaster and CoffeePost production studios.
Slaboshpytsky graduated from the Department of Direction at the Karpenko-Kary National University of Theater, Cinema, and Television. He has directed four short films and has worked at the Dovzhenko Film and Lenfilm studios.
This year 25 films from 15 countries were selected to compete at the 60th Berlinale, one of the world’s leading film festivals.
