The scenes of Resurrection of Christ and Christ´s Descent into Hell became widespread in icon painting since the XVIII century. They are related to Easter, the main Orthodox festivity that marks the Resurrection of Christ.
Resurrection of Christ as His Descent into Hell
Creation period
XIX century
Dimensions
6,3x5,4 cm
6,3х5,4 x 0,4 cm
6,3х5,4 x 0,4 cm
Technique
Copper alloy, casting, champlevé enamel
Collection
Exhibition
2
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Resurrection of Christ as His Descent into Hell
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The icon Resurrection of Christ as His Descent into Hell was cast from a copper alloy in the XIX century. Its centre portrays Jesus Christ portrayed full-length in an oval nimbus — a mandorla. In icon painting, such a nimbus means that the Saviour is represented in His terrestrial and celestial glory.
The icons Resurrection of Christ and Christ´s descent into Hell are part of the festive iconostasis in homes and churches. If a church was consecrated to the Resurrection of Christ, the icon has a place for it guaranteed by the canon: to the right of the Holy Gate. Usually, the image of the Resurrection of Christ on a cast icon occupies the central position, as in the New Testament and in the church holiday calendar the Easter is ranked the highest.
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Many of the events described in the Bible are narrated in the future tense: they are called prophecies. Christ´s descent into Hell is one of them. Icons representing the Resurrection of Christ and His descent into Hell appeared in the Byzantine art in the IX century. By means of evocative imagery, the artists tried to convey their main idea: Jesus Christ redeemed human sins with His death.
Jesus Christ resurrected three days after His execution on the Calvary cross. In His early sermons, He predicted that to His pupils. Later, when the Myrrhbearers reunited near the closed Holy Sepulchre to wash Christ´s body, an angel announced to them that Jesus had risen and would soon appear before the faithful. In none of the four Gospels the resurrection of Christ is described in detail as it is considered a mystery inaccessible to mortals.
In icon painting, this mystery is also revealed symbolically, by depicting scenes from the New Testament indirectly related to the miraculous resurrection of the Saviour, such as Reassurance of Saint Thomas, Appearance of Angels and Appearance of the Risen Jesus Christ to Two Disciples.
Jesus Christ resurrected three days after His execution on the Calvary cross. In His early sermons, He predicted that to His pupils. Later, when the Myrrhbearers reunited near the closed Holy Sepulchre to wash Christ´s body, an angel announced to them that Jesus had risen and would soon appear before the faithful. In none of the four Gospels the resurrection of Christ is described in detail as it is considered a mystery inaccessible to mortals.
In icon painting, this mystery is also revealed symbolically, by depicting scenes from the New Testament indirectly related to the miraculous resurrection of the Saviour, such as Reassurance of Saint Thomas, Appearance of Angels and Appearance of the Risen Jesus Christ to Two Disciples.
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The icon Resurrection of Christ as His Descent into Hell exists in two variants. In the first one, Christ is depicted wearing simple secular clothes, and in the second one, naked, standing over the Sepulchre with a flag in His hand.
In Russian icon painting, since the beginning of the XVII century, the plots Descent into Hell and Rising from the Tomb are united into a more complex image of the Resurrection of Christ.
In the center of both of them, the Saviour is represented in the middle of the beams of Divine Glory, and in the Rising from the Tomb, unlike Western European icons, Christ is depicted wearing clothes.
The ornament in the background is an imitation of hills, the main element of landscape in icons, conveyed by simple geometrical shapes. The icon is coated with White and blue enamel.
The ornament in the background is an imitation of hills, the main element of landscape in icons, conveyed by simple geometrical shapes. The icon is coated with White and blue enamel.
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Iskitim Municipal Museum of Arts and History
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Resurrection of Christ as His Descent into Hell
Creation period
XIX century
Dimensions
6,3x5,4 cm
6,3х5,4 x 0,4 cm
6,3х5,4 x 0,4 cm
Technique
Copper alloy, casting, champlevé enamel
Collection
Exhibition
2
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