Antique Russian Icon Mother of God Shui-Smolenskaya 19th Century, 35x29 cm
Antique Russian icon depicting the Mother of God Shui-Smolenskaya. In the years 1654-1655, in the city of Shuya near Vladimir in the Smolensk region, this orthodox icon became renowned for miraculously stopping a severe epidemic. Painted on commission by a devout individual, it significantly contributed to the healing, especially of the sick who sought help through it. The Virgin holds the Child on her left arm, with His right hand raised in a blessing gesture. A unique iconographic feature: the...
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Antique Russian icon depicting the Mother of God Shui-Smolenskaya. In the years 1654-1655, in the city of Shuya near Vladimir in the Smolensk region, this orthodox icon became renowned for miraculously stopping a severe epidemic. Painted on commission by a devout individual, it significantly contributed to the healing, especially of the sick who sought help through it. The Virgin holds the Child on her left arm, with His right hand raised in a blessing gesture. A unique iconographic feature: the Child touches His bare foot with His left hand, His right leg is raised significantly, and He rests His foot on His left knee. This specific position of the Child expresses a childlike and spontaneous attitude contrasting with the static nature of the 'Hodegetria' type and the oriental spirit, aiming for a representation free from human earthly attitudes. The Mother of God icon is delivered in a blue box and comes with an evaluation performed by a specialized expert. Origin: Northern Russia. Materials: wood, levkas. Actual measurements: 36.5x29.5 cm. Period: 19th century.
