Icon; Russia, 19th century.

Icon; Russia, 19th century.
"Crucifixion and scenes of saints and the Virgin".
Tempera on panel.
It shows wear on the pictorial surface, Repainting and restorations.
Measurements: 43,5 x 35 x 3 cm.
This old Russian icon presents four scenes of the life of Jesus and in the center is included the Crucifixion. Aesthetically the piece is close to the production of the "old believers" or "raskolniki" derived from a schism of the Russian Orthodox faith that occurred in 1654, following a series of religious reforms promulgated by Patriarch Nikon with the intention of bringing the Russian Church closer to the Greek one. Because of their opposition to these changes, the believers ended up being persecuted and cruelly decimated, especially during the rule of Tsar Peter the Great. To escape this situation, many of the raskolniki fled to the remote regions of Russia; more recently, they established colonies in Argentina and Uruguay. Today, their practice is fully legalized in the Russian Federation.