Painted Wooden Icon of Virgin and Child

CIRCA 19TH CENTURY A.D.

12 3/8 in. (395 grams, 31.5 cm).

The infant Christ seated on her knee within a stepped recess, Greek letters in the field with inscription 'ΜΡ ΘΥ' for 'Mother of God' flanking the Virgin's halo, 'IC XC' for 'Jesus Christ' to the left of the Child's head and inside his nimbus 'O Ѿ N' for 'The Only One who always exists'; some restoration; handwritten script and hand-drawn cross to reverse.

Provenance

Ex French gallery, Paris.

Literature

Cf. Geelmuyden Bulgurlu, V., Ulf, A., Lindgren N., Bodin, H., Balicka-Witakowska, E., Five essays on icons, Stockholm & Istanbul, 2005, fig.5, p.29, for one of the earliest images of the type.

Footnotes

The icon shows the Virgin in the attitude of Mother of Consolation, or in that of Hodegetria. This is the iconographical type of Virgin Mary one encounters most frequently in an Eastern Orthodox Church or home, Hodegetria meaning 'Mother of God Pointing the Way'. The Virgin Mary is shown with the Christ on her lap, her eyes looking at the viewer and her right hand indicating Christ, seeming to say 'Follow Him'.

CONDITION

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LOT 2079