How to Read an Icon
Icons may look simple at first, but they rely on a sophisticated set of symbols to express complex religious ideas. The faithful must learn to decipher this coded language in order to understand them. For example, the figures may not seem realistic and they may lack a sense of depth.
This is deliberate. Iconographers do not use shadows since a depiction of natural light would contradict the sacred light that the icon is meant to reveal. Highlights are added not to make forms appear rounded, but to symbolize the radiance of the holy figures. Indeed, when an iconographer applies colors and gold, it is not simply as adornment, but as an expression of the unseen reality of the divine.
How Icons are Used
Orthodox churches are filled with icons to remind the faithful of God's presence. The iconostasis is a wall filled with icons (as seen when entering this exhibition), and it functions as an enormous icon itself. It connects the heavenly realm of the sanctuary, where clergy perform holy rituals, with the earthly realm of the nave, where the congregation gathers during services. Each separate icon of a church also has an important symbolic role, as seen in the examples nearby.
Icons also are popular in the Orthodox Christian home, which acts as a microcosm of the church and serves as another important site of worship. Many believers create a holy space, known as a Beautiful Corner, inside their homes. Meant to be visible from the front door, the corner usually includes a cross, a prayer book, a Bible, a censer with incense, and a vigil lamp. It also displays at least three icons-depictions of Christ, the Mother of God, and the family's patron saints.
Icon in Seven Registers
Early 17th Century
Russia
Egg tempera on wood
R2008.12
Nicene Creed
ca. 1880 Russia
Egg tempera on wood
This icon depicts the Nicene Creed, a profession of faith written at the First Council of Nicea (325) and chanted at Orthodox services ever since. Icons rarely depict prayers, and this one would have been specially commissioned for a rural church or as a family icon. The icon begins at upper left with an illustration of the prayer's opening line. It then uses icons to represent the subsequent clauses.The scenes, from left to right and top to bottom, are:1. God the Father overseeing Heaven and earth2. The First Ecumenical Council3. The Expulsion from Paradise 4. The Annunciation5. The Nativity of Christ6. The Crucifixion7. The Deposition and Entombment 8. The Resurrection and Descent 9. The Ascension10. A Scene from the Last Judgment 11. A Scene from the Last Judgment 12. An illustration of the eighth line of the prayer: And we believe in the Holy Spirit...13-16. Illustrations of the last four lines of the prayer: And we believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church...Museum of Russian icons Ramess
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible;
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-begotten, Begotten of the Father before all ages, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made:
Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man;
And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried;
And the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures;
And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father;
And He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, Whose kingdom shall have no end. And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, and Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, Who spoke by the Prophets;
And we believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one Baptism for there mission of sins.
We look for the Resurrection of the dead, And the Life of the age to come.
Amen.
The Miracle of the Apparition of the Archangel Michael to Joshua and Archippos
17th Century
Moscow, Russia
Wood, guesso, silver
1998,0605.6
The icon glorifies the deeds of the Archangel Michael. Depictions of his acts were common in Byzantine art, especially on murals. The earliest cycle dedicated to his deeds in Russian art is depicted on the southern gates of the cathedral in Suzdal (late 12th century) and on a late 14th-century icon of ‘the Archangel Michael and his Acts’ in the Archangel cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin (Smirnova 1988, 272).
The icon combines the three main episodes of the Acts of the Archangel Michael, described both in the Book of Joshua and in texts on the miracles of the Archangel. The Apparition of the Archangel Michael to Joshua, the son of Nun, who takes off his shoe is based on the words: ‘And the captain of the Lord’s host said unto Joshua, loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so’(Joshua V:13–15).
The next chapter describes the fall of the walls of Jericho: ‘And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat…’ (Joshua VI:4–5). Both these scenes were popular on Moscow icons and were inspired by the Byzantine tradition.
The third episode of the Miracle at Chonai was more typically found on Northern and Novgorod icons. The scene is depicted on a famous Novgorod icon dating from the 15th–16th century in the Russian Museum in St Petersburg (Laurina 1977, no. 19). The composition of the Museum’s icon follows the traditional iconography. The scene is depicted in a rocky landscape and shows the attempts by the devil and unbelievers to destroy an oratory dedicated to St Michael at Chonai near Hierapolis in Phrygia. They dam a river in order to flood the oratory, but the Archangel appears in time to divert the waters thanks to the prayers of a hermit named Archippos. The miracle is celebrated on 6 September.
Cast Metal Icons and Pendants
The Orthodox faith makes little distinction between icons painted on wood, those sewn in cloth, and those cast in metal-so long as they conform to accepted iconographic standards. Cast metal icons and crosses, however, were particularly popular in the 1700s and 1800s, specifically among Old Believers, a conservative sect in Russian Orthodoxy. Metal icons had particular appeal because of their affordability, portability, and durability, surviving rigors of use that would have quickly damaged icons painted on wood.
Feasts
A series of feasts and holy days gives texture and meaning to the annual calendar of the Orthodox Church. While churches hold many feasts that celebrate saints and events of local importance, the icons in this room correspond to the principal feasts recognized by all Orthodox Christians.
Chief among them is Pascha, or Easter, which celebrates the Resurrection of Christ. According to the Gospels, Jesus Christ was laid to rest in a stone tomb after his crucifixion, but was resurrected three days later. The faithful believe he then descended into Hell, where he freed righteous people who died before his arrival, leading them to Heaven. His resurrection and liberation of the dead sets forth the most fundamental Christian belief: eternal salvation through Christ.
In addition to Easter, 12 Great Feasts mark events from the lives of Christ and the Mother of God to help tell the story of salvation:
the Nativity of the Mother of God (September 8)
the Elevation of the Cross, when Saint Helen discovered the true cross (September 14)
the Presentation of the Mother of God to the Temple (November 20)
the Nativity of Christ, or Christmas (December 25)
the Theophany, or Baptism of Christ (January 6)
the Presentation of Christ in the Temple (February 2)
the Annunciation, when the Mother of God learned she would bear the Messiah (March 25)
the Transfiguration, the miracle when Christ appeared as a radiant light to his disciples (August 6)
the Dormition, when the Mother of God passed from earthly life to eternity (August 15)
the Entry into Jerusalem, or Palm Sunday, when Jesus entered Jerusalem (7 days before Easter)
the Ascension, when Christ was taken into Heaven (40 days after Easter)
the Pentecost, when the Apostles received the Holy Spirt (so days after Easter)
Note: dates according to the Revised Julian Calendar
Crucifix with Feasts
18th Century, Russia,
Brass
R2013.32
This elaborate cast metal crucifix was mass produced in a Russian workshop includes icons of many saints depicts with feasts was likely commissioned for a beautiful corner.
Russian workshops mass produced metal icons and crosses to meet the needs and incomes of were more affordable and met the needs of Russian families. These objects would be placed in a beautiful corner, or icon corner, as a way to make the home a satellite of the Church. The tradition of including many saints and feasts in a single icon was especially prominent from the late 1700s through the 1800s when many Russians had limited resources.
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