University of l)elaware: Art Conseryation Internship

Title: Resurrection wilh Twelve FeastsArtist or Maker: n/a

Report of Examination and Proposal for Treatment

Accession Number: 91.13.020Object: Russian IconDate: 186 century

Owner: University of DelawareUniversity Museums c/o Janet Gardner

Broske

Dimensions:Height: 48.5 cmWidth: 39 cmThickness:2 cm

Inscriptions and Labels: illegible pencilinscriptions on the verso, incised inscriptions,and paper labels with numbers.

Condition: Poor

Examination Purposes: for treafrnentExamined By: Laura DiPasqualeConsulted: Anya Shutov

Examination Report Date: March 5, 2008

Description:Painted on a flat panel in a traditional style, this icon depicts twelve feasts surrounding a

central image of the resurrection. The order of the scenes is unusual, but some of the figures aredistinguishable throughout; The Mother of God is depicted with a blue maphorion wfihthreestars. These golden stars, one above the forehead and one on each shoulder, are sometimesconsidered a symbol of the Holy Trinity, though iconographic tradition often considers them as

symbolic of her virginity before, during and after childbirttr (Queno! l2l). In traditionalRussian icons, the Virgin would be wearing a maroon mophorion In Early Italian paintings, theVirgin often wore a blue maphorion, since commissioners wanted the Virgin's clothing to bepainted in the most expensive pigment, lapis lazuli. Traditionally, red drapery indicated interiorspaces, and scenes were set outside to avoid problems with depicting interior spaces. The factthat in this icon the Virgin is wearing a blue maphorion suggests that the iconographer wasprobably influenced by Western painters. The unusual setting of the scenes inside buildings alsoshows Western influence (Shutov 2ll3l08). Christ is discernable by the markings in his haloand his clothing. There are three Greek letters on the halo that stand for "I am that I am," ttrewords that God used to reveal himself to Moses oil Mount Sinai. Christ is also depicted with theinscribed letters IC XC the initials of Jesus Christ (Tradigo 231). lt is interesting to note that all

figures in the icon are painted from an angle, interacting with other figures in their scene. Theonly firlly frontal depictions are of Christ, in the center image of Resurrection and in theTransfiguration.

The scenes are as follows: (top row, left to right):In the Trinity, three Archangels are siuing around the table: God the Father wears a blue garmentsymbolizing His divinity, God the Son wears red and blue symbolizng incarnation and thedivine, and God the H$ly Spirit wears light blue and green, symbolizing heaven and earth,respectively. This image has an altemative narne, the "Hospitality of Abraham", whicheliminated the issue of depicting God, which was prohibited by the Bible. This interpretation,which refers to Genesis 18, describes the appearance of three angels to Abraham at Mamre

The next image is the Nativity of the Virgin, which depicts five figures, who all look towards thebirth. Anne, mother of Virgin is sitting on a bed. Joachim (Virgin's father) is next to Anne. Theparents are surrounded by few maidens.

The third image is of the Presentation of the Vfugm, in which the Virgin is pictured as a mini-adult, with a bhrc maphorian andrcd chiton, and stars onher maphorian. The three otherfigures, her parents, Anne and Joachim, and the priest Zechanah, all look to her. According totradition, the Mother of God was presented at the Temple of Jerusualem when she was threeyears old. Behind Zechaiahis the veil of the Temple, hidingthe Ark of the Covenant. TheMother of God is the first and only woman to enter the "Holy of Holies," and she herself wouldbecome the temple of Christ (Quenot 51)

The final image on the top depicts the Annunciation. The Archangel Gabriel stands to the left ofthe scene, raises his right hand and tilts a cross in his left hand towards a bowing Virgin. He isrevealing that the Virgin will conceive the Son of God.

(down left side):In the Nativity of Christ, the baby Christ wrapped in white is hovering in the center of the imagewhile the Virgin, Joseph, and the three Magi look on.

The next image is of the Presentation of the child Christ by His parents to the priest Simeon inthe Temple. The scene is meant to take place in front of the altar, whichcould be represented inthis iconby the blue drapery. The presentation of the child Christ embodies the concept of theo'Author of the Law accomplishing what was laid down by the laf' (Vespers l). St. Anne standsin the background (Boguslawski).

(down right side):In the Baptism of Christ, a nude Christ is attended by John the Baptist and the Archangel. Thisscene is based on the Gospel of Mark (l:10-l l), and is also known as the Theophany, because itis the point at which Christ begins His minis@ of salvation. In Eastern Orthodox tradition, thebaptism of Christ marked one of two occasions when the three members of the Trinitymanifested themselves simultaneously. God the Father may be symbolized in this icon by theclouds and ray of light above Christ. Christ is shown being baptued in the river Jordan.

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The next image is the Transfiguration, which shows Christ standing Mount Tabor in the center,

with Moses and Elijah on either side of Him. Peter, James and John are kneeling at the base ofthe mountain, stunned and ecstatic from seeing the deified body of Christ, standing on an equal

plane with Moses and Elijah, the two seers of the Old Testament (Tradigo 125). Based offtheSynoptic Gospels, this scene is significant because it revealed the glory of Christ's divinity to his

disciples, and showed that He was not another prophet, but was greater than any other. ("TheSignificance..")

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(bottom row, left to right):In the Entry into Jerusalem, Christ, who identified by the symbols in his halo, is riding a whitedonkey and greeting a woman. He is descending the Mount of Olives. He is followed by a manwith a halo, probably one of the Apostles. Christ's entry into Jerusalem fulfilled Zechariah's..prophecy of the arrival of a king and savior (Matthew 2l:4-5, Zochaiah9:9), and is paradoxical

because the initial triumph of his enfiy is countered by the fact that the following day He will be

crucified (Tradigo 130).

The next scene is of the Ascension of the Virgin, and portrays the Virgin standing in the center,

with two angels dressed in white on either side of her with raised hands, looking towardsonlookers. An image of Christ's head and halo floats above the scene.

The Assumption (Dormition) of the Virgin, depicts the dead Virgin lying on abed, with Christabove her, holding her soul, which is a small figure, clothed all in white and in a sitting position.

The final scene on the bottom is of the Elevation of the Cross, and shows a central image of ablack cross, with one female and three male figures. These figures could be the Bishop Macarius,and the Saints Constantine and Helen, his mother (Tradigo 155).

The central image is of a simplified Anastasis with a smaller Western Resurrection above it. Inthe Anastasis, Christ is surrounded by a backdrop of red, and is flanked by multiple haloedfigures. It depicts His triumphal descent into Hades, where he raises Adam and Eve from theirgrave (Ouspensky 188). Christ's right hand is outstretched towards a bearded figure who kneelsbeside him. Traditionally in depictions of the Resurrection, Christ grasps the hand of Adam,who stares at Him with a look ofjoy and fatigue (Quenot 139). The woman in the foregroundcould be Eve, who traditionally kneels timidly at Christ's feet. The f.ing; David and Solomonoften stand to Christ's left, wearing royal robes (Quenot 139) The four iorner segments of thisimage are shaped irregularly and are filled with Evangelist portraits, and are identified by theirinscriptions; Clockwise from top left: John, Matthew, Luke, Mark.

Support:Construction:

The panel is constructed of two separate pieces, both of which are cut tangentially. Thesepieces are connected by a butt joint, with no overlapping. While they are probably gluedtogether, there is no evidence of glue in the joints. The larger of the two pieces is26.7cm(10.5in) wide, and the smaller piece is l2.7cm (5in) wide.

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There are two battens, which are tapered slightly and come from either side. The batterU

which is inserted on the verso from the left, is 8.3cm from the bottonr, and the batten insertedfrom the right is 34.3cm from the bottom. The battens are horizontally incised on the top and

bottom. The puqpose of these incisions appears to be purely ornamental, as they do not appear tohave an iconographic purpose. There are some smaller unidentified tool markings along theedges of the panel.

There are some visible knots on the verso, but they are small. These are at l l cm fromthe left, 33 cm from thp bottom, and -.75 cm in diameter; 9.5 cm from the left, 43 cm from thebottom, -1.5 cm in diameter; and26.5 cm from the left,20 cm from the bottom, and -1.5 cm indiameter; 25 cm from left, 30 cm from the bottom, and I cm in diameter.

Above the left bottom batteno there appears to be a wooden dowel insert, which may havebeen put in to replace a popped knot. This insert (and its accompanying fill) is located on the leftedge of the panel, is 3.5 cm wide and is 13-15.5 cm from the bottom.

There is a metal hook still in place, and it protudes fromthe front of the panel about I mmo and is 4cm long and located19cm from the left. On the verso, the hook is located lScm fromthe left and approximately 39crr from the bottom, and is 3 cm indiameter. It appears to be an original hangng device, although thisis conjecture. There is also a more modem hanging device thatconsists of d-rings and a wire. These are located 42 en from thebottom and 1.5 cm from the right and left sides.

Detail af hookCondition

The panel is warped. The warp is convex, and is 1.5cm displaced from the center. Theverso is dark and oxidized, and there are some scratches that are lights and frestr, indicatingrelatively recent damage.

There is some evidence of insect damage (small exit holes), which are especiallyprevalent in the upper batten, but also are present on the panel itself. The holes are about lmm indiameter, but the infestation does not appear to be active. The battens are loose.

The metal hook that is poking through the surface of the icon has started to corrode. Thecorrosion is brown.

Ground, Bole, Gilding, Paint:Construction:

The ground is made of a very thin, smooth white gesso, which was applied withconsistent thickness throughout. Traditionally, the gesso would have been applied in layers, butthis is not obvious on this piece.

There is gilding in most of the scenes, particularly in the halos of the various figures. Thegilding is probably water gilding, since the edges of the pieces of applied gilding are apparent.Some of the gilding appears to have been done hastily, as they do not follow the borders thatthey are intended to fill (see details below). The gilding is silver colored, likely with atint€dcoating on top to make it appear gold. The bole undemeath the metal leaf is red. There is paint

on top of the gilding in some, but not all areas. It appears that the silver leaf was applied first,followed by the roskirsh, outlines, and the painting of the majority of the other figures, thenvarnish was applied to the silver leaf to make it appear gold. The figures over the gildedbackground were painted last. These are generally black outlines and transparent glazes, as seen

in the background of the Resurrection, and the scene of the Transfiguration, where transparentreds are used for shadows.

The paint has characteristics of egg tempera: it is of lean vehicular consistency; it is alsomatte, smooth and wa$ applied thinly. The paint was applied in the traditional method, with thegarments and background painted with dark blues, greens, red and yellow, outlined with brown,and highlighted with hatching in white and mustard yellow. The red is highlighted with yellowand outlined with dark brown. Blue garments are highlighted with light blue and outlined withblack. Green is highlighted with light green and not outlined. Navy blue (such as the Virgidsgarment) is highlighted with thin yellow lines. Tan garments are highlighted with white andoutlined with brown. The second highlight appears to be more curved than it would betraditionally. The faces and hands were painted brown first, then outlined with a lighter tancolor, with white highlights for hands and gleam in eye. Black was added to the eyes andeyebrows and around the head. There is writing in black in the border and within the images.The icon is painted with broad patches of color that do not always correspond perfectly with theoutlines of the figures in the scene. One example of this is a maidservant who blends into thebackground because her garments are not outlined, and no color is added to distinguish her fromthe mustard yellow background. Many of the haloes appear to have been gilded hastily, and areoften square patches of gold that do not fill their outlines completely. The backgrounds of someof the scenes depict abstracted architecture.

Details showingtechnique of ,

Condition:While the panel itself is relatively stable, the paint and gilding are not. There is crackle

throughout the entire piece, in both the paint and the gesso, except in the lower right quadrant.The craquelure is uneven, and is most pronounced following the joint, and along the pith of thelarger panel, thus creating tenting in two vertical strips, each about l/3 from the left and rightedges. The pattem of the craquelure is both parallel and perpendicular to the grain of the wood,

NativityElevation of the Cross Presentation in the Temple

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but the parallel crackle is more pronoulced. There is tenting in a vertical directiort, everywhereexcept the lower right, and most of the cracks lead to larget areas of blind cleavage. There are

losses in the paint and ground along the tented areas and cracks in the exposed ground. Thevarnish is abraded in some axeas over the gilding, which has led to minute tarnishing of the silverleaf below.

Sur{ace Coatings and Restorations :

Conqfruction:There is evidence of previous restoration, with at least one campaigR. These restorations appear

darker under UV light, and have slightly rough texture to them. The restorations that were donein large sections are located along the bottom of the piece. The first restoration is approximately22.5 sq. cm and is located at I cm from the left edge. The next is 6.75 sq. cm and begins at 15.5

cm from the left. The next is 20 cm from the left and is approximately 4 sq. cm. The lastrestoration is approximately 30 sq. cm and is located 28 cm from the left. There is furtherrestoration running vertically, along the joint. Other restoration has been conducted around themetal hook and the knot on the lower left. The restorationsconsist of fills of a white material which are poody leveled.These fills are covered with brown paint, which was appliedwith wide brush strokes, in areas around the edges. In areaswithin scenes, there was an atternpt to match original colors,but the paint itself is too matte and does not match thesurrounding finishes. The restorations appear darker underUV light (see detail). There appears to be a layer of varnishthat is probably not original, since, when viewed under UVlight, it appears to be spread over the areas of restoration.The vamish could be synthetic or natural resin, and itfluoresces apale green under UV light. It is kind of matteand appears gritty/pebbly, perhaps indicating that it wassprayed on. The varnish is sensitive to KECK 3, with fourparts mineral spirits, tlree parts acetone and three partsdiacetone alcohol.

Ico4under WlightConditioq:The varnish has discolored, especially over the restorations, and the paint over the fills also nolonger matches the original colors. Some of the fills have started to crack and delaminate,especially along the bottom edge. There is a layer of grime covering the whole piece, as well asgrime underneath the surface coating.

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Treatment Proposal:l. Carry out pre-treatnent written and photo documentation.2. Consolidate the ground and the paint.3. Surface clean the painting with aqueous system.4. Consider the removal of old restoration paint.5. Fill the areas of loss in ground and paint.6. Locally apply alayer of isolating vamish.7. Inpaint locallyl8. Locally apply a final layer of varnish9. Cany out post-treafinent written and photo documentation

Permission to proceed with treatment

I have received the Report on Condition and Proposal for Treatnent prepared by LauraDiPasquale regarding number 9 I . I 3.020, Resurre ction w ith Tw elve Feasts.

As owner or agent for this painting/object I give permission for the treatnent to proceed asoutlined in the report.

Janet Gardner BroskeCurator, University Museums, moosie@udel.edu, 302-83 I - I 043I 14 Old College, University of Delaware

Date

Laura DiPasquale Date 3/6/08

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Works Cited

Boguslawski, Andrew. "Icon Painling." 2005. Rollins College. 24 Mar.-Apr.2008

<http ://www.rollins.edu/Foreign_LanglRussian/frame I .hfinF.

Ouspensky, Leonid, and Vladimir Lossky. The Meaning of Icons. Trans. E. Kadloubovsky.

Quenot, Michel. The Icon: the Window on the Kingdom. Trans. A Carthusian Monk. Crestwood,

NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary P,1991.

Shutov, Anya. "Iconography." Lecture. University of Delaware, Newark. l3 Feb.2008. Na.

'The Significance of the Lord's Transfiguration." Transfiguration of Our Lord. 2008. Russian

Orthodox Church. Mar.-Apr. 2008 <http://www.holy-

transfi guration. org/transfrg_si gnif.htnF.

Tradigo, Alfredo. Icons and Saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Trans. Stephen Sartarelli.

Los Angeles: The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2006.

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Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary P, 1983.

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