Lot 86

RUSSIAN ICON

Russian silver icon elaborated by Khlebnikov studio according to the older orthodox Russian iconographic morphology on the motif of Mary - "Joy of all who sorrow". The Marian theme refers to the boundless love of Mary and to the event of 1688, when an icon in Moscow healed incurably ill woman. Upper text says: "Robe to the naked, healing to the sick." Dedication says: “An exact copy of the icon of the Mother of All Mourners after a thunderstorm that erupted on July 23, 1888, above the chapel located in St. Petersburg." The event is celebrated on October 24 in the Orthodox calendar. Ivan Chlebnikov was born in St. Petersburg to the family of a jewelry and diamond trader. In 1865 he opened his own workshop, where he employed his three sons. Khlebnikov's icons have often survived complex periods in history thanks to their extraordinarily high-quality design and decorativeness, which bears reference to traditional folklore motifs.