MEDIUM PRIORITY PROJECT

Travel triptych: Our Lady of Kazan, St. John, Tikhon and Mary of Egypt; St. Sergius, St.

The Vatican tryptic is composed of three separate panels. In the center is a depiction of a Marian image of Sacred Russian Art: the Madonna of Kazan. On the sides, there are several saints from the local church and known worldwide. On the left, although the inscriptions are barely legible, we can still recognize St. John, Tikhon, and Mary of Egypt. The tablets include ruined silver linings and underlying panels, which are very old, in need of restoration, and have never fully undergone an investigation. A completed study and restoration will allow the work to return to the Vatican Pinacoteca’s Hall of Icons.

Travel triptych: Descent of Christ to the Underworld (“Anastasis”) and ten Saints

The work is a refined manufactory of Sacred Russian Art. The small traveling tryptic depicts the important Easter theme of the Descent to the Underworld, also called “Anastasis”. Christ the Savior exits the Underworld to liberate the protagonists, Adam and Eve, who exit the tomb surrounded by the righteous. Ten saints witness the scene at the side doors. The panel presents many problems. One problem is with the images, which are blurry from burn marks. The restoration project will fix the pictorial layers to avoid color loss. The cleaning will allow the legibility of the inscriptions (tituli) in ecclesiastical Slavonic, and an in-depth study of the work will be possible.

St. Simeon Stylites icon

The Vatican icon depicts the first Stylite monk, St. Simeon. He was born in Sis (present-day Turkey) in the late 4th century. After trying various forms of asceticism, he chose a very extreme one, adapting to live standing on top of a column. The saint lived this way until his death (†459), which explains the designation “stylite” (from the Greek στῦλος “column”). The work depicts a monk providing food to the saint from a basket lowered with a string. Another monk receives a scroll from the saint. The note is in Greek: “Alone, without possessions, like an eagle flying high.” This phrase is explicit and teaches the lifestyle chosen by Saint Simeon himself. The work is by the Cretan school and is from the late 16th century.

TOTAL COST: € 56.753,11  ($ 55,470.49)

• Support rehabilitation

• Surface cleaning for removal of inconsistent deposits

• Consolidation

• Cleaning of the pictorial surface with selected solvent mixtures

• Grouting and reintegration of gaps in the paint film

• Final varnishing and/or revision/adjustment of protective varnish

• Disassembly/remounting of the frame