Museum complex

Ceramic icon “Saint Michael”

X–XI centuries
Clay; glaze
17,2 x 17,3 cm
Receipt: from Rumiantsev Museum (previously in the collection of the famous collector P.I.Sevastianov, a gift from the Athos monk Panteleimon Sapozhnikov)
Showcase 8

A fragment of a ceramic icon with the image of the Archangel Michael on a horse in a round medallion.

More information...

Saint Michael the Archangel is the main Archangel who is one of the most revered in Christianity.
In Orthodoxy, he is also called the Taxiarck, which means the head of the Holy host of Angels and Archangels.
According to the Sacred Writings, the God at the beginning of time created a huge number of angels, and set a hierarchy among them, when lower ranks should have obey higher ones. At the head of all angels was appointed Dennitsa. The Angel that was the strongest, the smartest, the most beautiful and the closest to God. But Dennitsa’s pride drove him insane, he cherished his high position, ceased to fulfill commands of the God and all other angels subordinate to him and began to incite for revolt against the God. And then one of the angels showed loyalty to the God, and loudly exclaiming: “Who is like God?” or “Who is equal to God?” (in Hebrew, “Mi ka El?”, in Russian, sounds like “Mikhail”), at the head of the majority of angels who remained faithful to the God, launched a battle and with the God's help overthrew Dennitsa (who became known as the Devil and Satan) with other fallen spirits: devils or demons. Since then, the Holy (faithful to God) angelic host is led by two archangels: Archangel Michael and Archangel Gabriel.
In iconography Archangel Michael is often depicted with a spear in one hand and a special sphere – a mirror (a symbol of foresight given to the Archangel by the God) – in the other.
Archangel Michael can also be depicted as the Taxiarch of the Heavenly Forces, dressed up in warrior’s armor or riding a horse.

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