13. Imperial icon on wood, "The Dormition of the Mother of God", post-Brancovan school, mid 18th century, collector's item

Identification elements in terms of iconographic and stylistic order: The icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God is an imperial icon and was probably the feast day icon from an iconostasis from around the mid-eighteenth century in Wallachia. The icon \painting reflects the consecrated scene of the Dormition of the Mother of God. Conventional architectures are projected onto the blue background of the icon, in front of which the consecrated scene unfolds. At the center of the composition, standing Jesus, surrounded by a mandorla painted in shades of red, holds in his arms the soul of his mother in the form of a child. In front of him, the Mother of God is lying on the bier, whom he blesses. She is mourned by the Apostles and kings grouped at her head and feet. In front of the bier is depicted the scene where an angel cuts off the hands of Iefonias, the unbeliever who touched the bier. The gold background of the Brâncovenesc icon is replaced with blue, the bright chromatics become more tarnished, and the characters' faces are more graphically rendered. Identification elements in terms of technical order: The wooden support of the icon consists of four boards, reinforced at the back with two semi-buried crossbars. Conclusions: In the post-Brâncovenesc period, in the painting workshops in Wallachia, Brâncovenesc models were copied, but with fewer material means, the sponsors now being middle-class people, small-scale nobles, guilds, merchants, or townspeople (A.D.).

Dimensions

width 70 cm, height 93 cm

Description

tempera and gold leaf on wood

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

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