LOT 0433

Monumental Wooden Russian Icon of Life of St. Nicolas

17TH CENTURY A.D.

35 x 43 1/4 in. (17.6 kg, 89 x 110 cm).

An icon of Saint Nicholas of Mira, tempera on wood panel, the central part of the composition depicting Saint Nicholas with an open book in his left hand showing an excerpt from the Gospel of Luke (VI.17) in which Christ is preparing for the Mount of Beatitudes sermon; Saint Nicholas shown blessing, dressed as a bishop, with a white sticharion, covered by a red omophorion, and surmounted by a white epitrachelion embroidered with black crosses; the saint flanked by Jesus and Virgin Mary, respectively on dark blue and red background; Christ holding the Gospel, Mary the bishop’s epitrachelion; in horizontal registers, left to right, and top to bottom, are depicted scenes of the saint’s life: Nicholas's birth; his baptism; Nicholas healing a woman; beginning his studies as a priest; the saint being appointed deacon; the saint invested in the priesthood; his ordination to Episcopacy; Nicholas appearing in dreams to Patriarch Ablabius and Emperor Constantine to persuade them to free three prisoners (two scenes); Nicholas saving the three prisoners from the death sentence; Nicholas rescuing three generals wrongly imprisoned; the saint chopping down a tree possessed by a demon; the saint calming a storm at sea; Nicholas rescuing the boy Basil from captivity; the Dormition of St Nicholas; the saint saving a boy from drowning in Kiev; Cyrillic inscription on the right and left side of the central image reading Никола́й Чудотво́рец = Saint Nicholas the wonderworker.

Ex Stair Galleries, New York, USA.
From an important collection of icons.

Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no. 12341-224608.

Cf. for similar icons, the icon of Palazzo Pitti, Firenze, inventory no.1890 no.9323; Piatnitsky, Y., Baddeley, O., Brunner, E., Mundell Mango, M., Sinai, Byzantium, Russia, Orthodox Art from the Sixth to Twentieth Century, London, 2000, fig.R25 p.273; Dumitrescu, M., ‘The Hagiographical Icon of Saint Nicholas in the Church of Michael the Brave from Ocna Sibiului. Iconographic, Artistic and Technical Issues’ in Anastasis. Research in Medieval Culture and Art, Vol.VI, Nr.1, May, 2019, pp.59-78; for the church garments see Houston, M. G., Ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine Costume and Decoration, London, 1977, pp.162ff., esp.fig.72.

Saint Nicholas lived in 4th century A.D. and was the bishop of Myra, in the Roman Asia Minor. Because of the many miracles attributed to his work, his cult was widespread in the Orthodox world and he is known as Nicholas the wonderworker. His reputation as a secret gift-giver (such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them outside, or the dowry given to three maidens saving them from prostitution) created a model for Santa Claus. The veneration of the saint, who participated in the Council of Nicaea of 325 A.D., began very soon after his death.