“The Holy Trinity of the Old Testament” came to Saratov as part of the collection of icon-painting monuments from the Yaroslavl Art Museum in 1958. Previously, the icon was in one of the oldest churches in the capital of the Golden Ring — the Church of Peter and Paul on the Volga.
Legend has it that the church was built shortly after the founding of the city by Yaroslav the Wise, “in the summer from the beginning of the world 6524 (1016).” Later, it became part of the Petrovsky Monastery, which was on a special account with the local princely house: the first wife of the legendary Yaroslavl Prince Fyodor Cherny, Anastasia, and his son, Michael, were buried on its territory, revered as local saints.
In 1691, the Church of Saint Peter and Paul on the Volga was rebuilt in stone at the expense of parishioners — instead of a burned down wooden one. It was one of the most beautiful examples of Yaroslavl architecture. The interior walls of the church were completely covered with frescoes. In the Sovereign tier of the iconostasis — the lowest one — there was an icon of the Holy Trinity of the Old Testament. One chapel of the temple was consecrated in the name of St. Michael Malein, the other — in the name of the Archangel Michael, apparently in honor of Prince Mikhail Fyodorovich of Yaroslavl.
The stone church was badly damaged during the White Guard uprising in 1918; in 1931 the parish was liquidated, and in 1937 the temple was demolished.
The image from the museum collection is based on the iconographic version of the Old Testament Holy Trinity with Abraham and Sarah, also called Abraham’s Hospitality. This tradition, known in Russia already at the turn of the 13th century, features the meeting with angels with detail.
According to Genesis, the Lord appeared to Abraham, the founder of the Jewish people, in the form of three angels. Abraham ordered his wife to prepare bread and a calf — he cordially greeted the guests. Then one of the messengers told Abraham that he would have a son. At that moment, Abraham was 100 years old, and his wife Sarah was 90.
In the 17th century, icon painters began to supplement the classical version of the image with various details, creating their own original versions. The version presented in the icon “The Holy Trinity of the Old Testament” is quite rare: the raised wings of the angels sitting at the table make the icon look solemn, the characters — dynamic and they convey the drama of the depicted moment.
Legend has it that the church was built shortly after the founding of the city by Yaroslav the Wise, “in the summer from the beginning of the world 6524 (1016).” Later, it became part of the Petrovsky Monastery, which was on a special account with the local princely house: the first wife of the legendary Yaroslavl Prince Fyodor Cherny, Anastasia, and his son, Michael, were buried on its territory, revered as local saints.
In 1691, the Church of Saint Peter and Paul on the Volga was rebuilt in stone at the expense of parishioners — instead of a burned down wooden one. It was one of the most beautiful examples of Yaroslavl architecture. The interior walls of the church were completely covered with frescoes. In the Sovereign tier of the iconostasis — the lowest one — there was an icon of the Holy Trinity of the Old Testament. One chapel of the temple was consecrated in the name of St. Michael Malein, the other — in the name of the Archangel Michael, apparently in honor of Prince Mikhail Fyodorovich of Yaroslavl.
The stone church was badly damaged during the White Guard uprising in 1918; in 1931 the parish was liquidated, and in 1937 the temple was demolished.
The image from the museum collection is based on the iconographic version of the Old Testament Holy Trinity with Abraham and Sarah, also called Abraham’s Hospitality. This tradition, known in Russia already at the turn of the 13th century, features the meeting with angels with detail.
According to Genesis, the Lord appeared to Abraham, the founder of the Jewish people, in the form of three angels. Abraham ordered his wife to prepare bread and a calf — he cordially greeted the guests. Then one of the messengers told Abraham that he would have a son. At that moment, Abraham was 100 years old, and his wife Sarah was 90.
In the 17th century, icon painters began to supplement the classical version of the image with various details, creating their own original versions. The version presented in the icon “The Holy Trinity of the Old Testament” is quite rare: the raised wings of the angels sitting at the table make the icon look solemn, the characters — dynamic and they convey the drama of the depicted moment.
