The icon ‘Saint George the Victorious on a black horse’ was created in the second half of the 15th century in Novgorod. The Great Martyr George was among the most revered saints in ancient Russia. He lived in the 3rd century AD in Asia Minor and suffered during the persecutions of Christians: he was cruelly tortured for 8 days and then beheaded.

On icons, George was depicted as a young warrior. The scene of the battle with the serpent from the Byzantine legend ‘The Miracle of the Serpent’ became the most common theme. The legend describes how George saved the mythical city of Lasia from a monster that devoured people. George is usually depicted on horseback, with the vanquished snake, and in later versions an animal-like dragon lying at his feet. At the bottom, the dragon’s lair was painted, in the right part of the icon, the artists depicted a silhouette of the city walls and a portrait of the royal couple. In the distant background, there were rocks and sparse vegetation; this was one of the first icons with a landscape. The collection of the Khanty-Mansiysk Museum presents the icon with a simplified subject and without a detailed background.

The icon was painted on a wooden base. It was cut from the core plank of a log, which was previously dried. Linden and ash were used most often, but some icons were made from expensive imported cypress wood. On the area where faces were to be painted, artists removed the top layer of the board, leaving the edges that served as a frame for the icon. Special canvas was glued on top. It was made of a thin linen fabric covered with levkas, a special mixture of chalk, glue and oil. The primary icon was painted on the levkas. Icon painters used tempera. It was made from powder pigment and egg yolk. The finished icon was covered with boiled linseed oil. Sometimes the icon was placed in an embossed frame made of fine silver or gold leaf.