LOT 144
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Lot 144
A RUSSIAN ICON OF ST. JOHN THE FORERUNNER AND LIFE SCENES, PALEKH, 19TH CENTURY. Known in Western Christianity as John the Baptist, he is commonly called John the Forerunner (Slavonic Predtecha, Greek Prodromos) in Eastern Orthodoxy. In the New Testament he was the forerunner of Christ’s earthly ministry, and in the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus he was also the precursor of Christ’s descent into Hades. Here he is shown as 'Angel of the Wilderness', holding a scroll on which is written 'Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world' (John 1:29). John wears a hair shirt (vlasyanitsa) and is depicted with wings which derive from the double meaning of the Greek word used to describe him in Mark 1:2 – angelos means both messenger and angel. Subsequently John is often called a 'heavenly man and earthly angel' in Orthodoxy. Here John holds a diskos (Eucharistic footed dish) containing the nude infant Christ, symbolizing the Lamb of God of the Eucharist. In the background are various scenes from the life of the Forerunner. They are described by corresponding inscriptions along the borders. They include, the Birth of John (lower left) and an angel leading the child John into the wilderness (mid left), the beheading of John (lower right) and the finding of the honorable head of John the Forerunner (mid right). At top center God the Father resting atop characteristic Palekh-style clouds delivers a blessing. The gilt lettered inscription along the upper border reads, The Image of the Holy Prophet John the Forerunner. 12 inches x 10.6 inches (30.5cm x 26cm).
Estimate:
$1,500 - 2,500
€ 1,125 - 1,875
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