Our Lady of Vladimir
Iconography: Vladimir icon of the Mother of God
Date: XII century. The first third 12th c.
Iconographic school/art center: The Byzantine icon painting
Origin: From Constantinople. Circa 1130 the icon was removed to Kiev and housed in Vyshgorod’s Monastery of the Mother of God. In 1155 Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky removed the icon from Vyshgorod to Vladimir, decorated it with an expensive case and housed in the Church of the Assumption, built in the years of 1158 and 1161. In August 26, 1395, during Tamerlane’s invasion, the icon was solemnly removed to Moscow where it was housed in the Kremlin’s Assumption Cathedral.
Material: Wood, tempera
Dimensions: height 104 cm, width 69,78 cm
A half-length image of the Mother of God. The Holy Virgin is shown holding the Infant Christ upon her right hand, with her head inclined to the right. The Child presses his cheek against his mother’s face embracing her by the neck, His face looks upward. The Child’s right hand is stretched forward touching the right shoulder of the Mother of God. Christ’s legs are covered with a chiton up to his feet, his left leg is bent so that his foot can be seen.
The icon was repainted several times.
On the reverse side of the icon is a depiction of the Throne and the Instrument of Passion.
Inv. № 14243. © The State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
Bibliography:
Государственная Третьяковская Галерея. Каталог собрания. Древнерусское искусство X — начала XV века. Том I. №1.
General view