Icon depicting the Virgin of Smolensk - 19th century

Height × width: 14.5 × 12.5 cm. Weight
Bronze casting with polychrome enamels
an image of Mary that takes its name from the city of Smolensk. According to tradition, the icon was used by Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos to bless the streets of Constantinople on the occasion of the marriage of his daughter Anna to Prince Vsevolod of Yaroslavl, and it arrived in Russia in the 11th century. In the 12th century, Vladimir II Monomakh solemnly donated it to the city of Smolensk, where the image was placed in the Cathedral of the Dormition. It was later lost during World War II. Furthermore, this object belongs to the group of icons of the Russian Old Believers, which were mass-produced from the 17th century onward. These artifacts were generally small in size and intended for private devotion. Their portability made them easy to carry and, when necessary, to conceal, thus meeting the religious needs of a community that, after the schism known as the Raskol, underwent periods of persecution by the official Russian Orthodox Church.


Carlo Maria Biagiarelli Antiquario - Roma
Item condition grading: **** good.
The icon is in a good state of preservation with the normal wear and defects commensurate with its age and use over time.