THE MOTHER OF GOD WITH THE YOUNG CHRIST AT THE THRONE
Moscow
The first third of the XV century
Wood, levkas, tempera
160,0 х 111,0 cm
From: “Alexandrovskaya sloboda” museum in 1941
Open storage
The icon is one of the earliest images of St. Sergius of Radonezh in Russian icon painting. There is an icon from the Trinity Cathedral of the Stefano-Makhrischsky Monastery, where it was located in the local row of the iconostasis.
There is no reliable information about the origin and time of creation of the icon. Perhaps that outstanding piece of art was created as a tumulary icon and was originally located near the tomb of St. Sergius in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, and to the cathedral of the Makhrishchsky monastery, restored after the devastating fire of the late 15th century, it was transferred no later than the 16th century. Or the icon could be created as a copy of the Trinity image commissioned by the Makhrishchy monastery, in which the memory of the monk was extremely honored. According to his hagiography, Sergius of Radonezh spent a short time in the Mahrishche monastery and in 1358, with the blessing of Metropolitan Alexy, founded beside it on the banks of the Kirzhach river the Annunciation Monastery.
This icon is unique in its iconography and outstanding in execution. It comes from the Trinity Stefano-Mahrishche monastery, where, according to the monastery's Inventory of 1641, it was located in the local row of the iconostasis of the cathedral. There is no reliable information about the origin and time of creating the icon, since there are no sources indicating the connection of this icon with the Mahrishche Monastery, which was badly damaged at the end of the 15th century during the fire and destroyed during the siege of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery in 1608–1610, when the monastery archive was lost.
In the mid-1920s, the famous restorer and art historian Igor Emmanuilovich Grabar, together with two other, the icon was first exported to the Alexandrovskaya Sloboda Museum, and in 1941 transferred to the Historical Museum. In the restoration workshop of the Historical Museum the image was cleaned from late layers. The remnants of the inscriptions, monograms and character of letters that were opened during the restoration process allowed the researchers to date the icon to the first half of the 15th century.
On the icon Mother of God, seating on the throne with the Christ Child in her arms, stretches out her hand to Sergius of Radonezh, who is praying in front of her. Jesus blesses the saint. In the upper left part of the composition in a medallion with an image of an angel praying to Our Lady. This unusual iconography goes back to the type of a gravestone portrait, common in the art of the Byzantine circle, but in Russian art preserved in single examples.
Perhaps this outstanding piece of art was painted as a tumulary icon and was originally located near the tomb of St. Sergius in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. But, most likely, a fresco with a similar composition was placed over the tomb, which is indirectly indicated by the fact that during the restoration works in the cathedral at the beginning of the 20th century, an ancient painting with the image of the Mother of God at the throne was discovered. In this case, the icon could be created as a copy of a tumulary image commissioned by the Mahrishche Monastery, in which the memory of the Radonezh hegumen was extremely honored.
According to the hagiography of Sergius of Radonezh, the monk spent a short time in the Mahrishche monastery, located relatively close to Trinity monastery, and founded beside it a monastery on the bank of the Kirzhach river in honor of the Annunciation.
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