Eastern Europe, Russia, ca. 19th century CE. Expertly painted in egg tempera on wood, an icon depicting the Mother of God, the wonderworking Kazan image modeled on the renowned 16th century prototype. The icon is adorned with a marvelously detailed silver oklad, featuring cut haloes painted with a navy blue Greek key border, wonderful vestments delineated in repousse so that the voluminous drapery folds cascade over Virgin and Child, with meticulously incised details to delineate the patterns and textures of the fabrics, as well as an integral silver frame incised with a stylized geometric pattern. The oklad is stamped with an assay mark that is difficult to decipher; however, the maker's mark below reads "EK". Icon and oklad are set in a glass-fronted wooden kiot with a gilt and red pigment liner made to resemble another frame. The strongly modeled visages shaded with stunning sfumato to produce soft, hazy personages suggest a Western European Renaissance influence. Size: 9" W x 10.25" H (22.9 cm x 26 cm)

According to curator Jeanne Marie Warzeski, "Russian icons of the mother of God—patterned on Byzantine originals— often received their Russian titles from the names of monasteries, towns where they appeared, countries they came from, and prophecies and visions from which they originated. Per tradition, the prototype of this icon came to Russia from Constantinople in the 1200s. After the Tatars besieged the city of Kazan in 1438, the icon disappeared. It reportedly was dug up in Kazan in 1579 by a girl named Matrona and her mother after the Virgin appeared repeatedly in the girl’s dreams, telling her of the buried icon. It was found in the ashes of a destroyed house, beneath the stove, wrapped in cloth. The Kazan Mother of God later became Russia’s symbol of national unity. The icon accompanied soldiers freeing Moscow from the Poles in 1612, and was with the troops fighting Napoleon in 1812, though in the latter case a copy was reputedly used. Some believe a fire destroyed the original icon in Tsar Peter I’s time, when it was housed in the St. Petersburg Cathedral of the Mother of God of Kazan. The image later considered as the 'original' was actually a re-creation." (Jeanne Marie Warzeski, "Windows into Heaven: Russian Icons from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art" catalogue accompanying the North Carolina Museum of History exhibition (October 4, 2013 - March 5, 2014, p. 16).

Icons (icon means "image" in Greek) are sacred objects within the Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition. Found in homes as well as churches, these painted images depict holy persons and saints as well as illustrate scenes from the Scriptures. Some icons are encased in precious metal covers (oklads) and glass-fronted wooden cases (kiots) like this example which is further embellished by the gilt liner. Icons are not worshiped, but are instead venerated for their ability to focus the power of an individual's prayer to God. As such they are truly "windows into heaven."

The oklad or riza, sometimes referred to as a revetment in English, is a metal cover, in this case silver, that not only protects the icon, but also serves to honor or venerate the figure(s) depicted on the icon. Oklads are usually adorned with repousse work and pierced to reveal elements of the underlying painting. This artisan truly knew how to bring silver to life in a manner that both complements and uplifts the painted image.

This icon was exhibited in "Windows Into Heaven: Russian Icons from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art" at the Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina (December 20, 2003 through February 22, 2004) which presented highlights of one of the world's great artistic traditions through an extraordinary group of sixty-five 18th and 19th century Russian icons on loan from the private collection of Lilly and Francis Robicsek. The “Windows Into Heaven” exhibition profiled a magnificent chapter of Russian artistry, the embrace of the Russian Orthodox faith of religious icons during the Romanov centuries. The Russian religious faith was an offshoot of Byzantine Christianity, which in 1054 parted ways from Roman Catholicism. Icons were and continue to be religious images created for veneration. As a focus for prayers and meditation for believers, icons serve as “windows into heaven.”

Provenance: ex-Francis and Lilly Robicsek collection, Charlotte, North Carolina USA, exhibited in "Windows into Heaven - Russian Icons from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art," Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina USA (December 20, 2003 through February 22, 2004)

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#119587

Painting shows lovely craquelure commensurate with age but imagery is still vivid. Expected bending and tarnish to the silver oklad. Small tear to oklad on Mary's sleeve. Some gilt loss to kiot 'frame' liner. Glass of kiot is intact. Areas of repair to the wood kiot with some loss as shown. Verso of kiot shows expected age cracks, wear, and small areas of loss - commensurate with age. Exhibition label from Mint Museum of Art on the verso as well.