Film about Orbeli brothers presented in Moscow

Moscow hosted recently the presentation of a documentary about the Orbeli brothers.

The film, directed by Ashot Jazoyan, features the fate of the three prominent representatives of the noble Armenian family.

In an article devoted to the three brothers, the Russian newspaper Novye Izvestia says each of them had his contribution to the Russian culture, as well as the development of the Russian-Armenian ties.

The premier screening of the film is dedicated to the 125th birthday anniversary of the youngest brother, Hovsep. Being the director of the Russian Hermitage Museum under Stalin’s rule and in the World War II era, the youngest Orbeli turned out bold enough to rescue internationally acclaimed masterpieces.

“One needs to have special courage and resoluteness to deliver a rebuff to audit committee members, preventing them to take out exhibits from the museum. Only over my dead body! You can kill me here, but I as long as I am alive, you cannot take out anything from here,” the paper quoted Orbeli as saying.

That kind of resoluteness was characteristic of all the three brothers. None of them ever gave up his moral principles and joined the Communist Party. But avoiding the principal tyrant appeared beyond their power. Academician Levon Orbeli, who was the vice president of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the favorite student of Ivan Pavlov, the father of evolutionary physiology theorem, was sacked from all his posts because of supporting the geneticists experiencing the Stalin-era repressions.

Later, Joseph Orbeli was fired from the Hermitage Museum.

The eldest brother, Ruben Orbeli, was a hydro-archaeologist who knew 12 languages. All the three pursued science, following their father’s advice, who said the Armenians have many commanders, but no scientists.

It is the common memory, culture and science that convey the message of the code capable of uniting the two countries.