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Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple
(Byzantium and Early Russia)
This scene is rarely met with as a separate icon, although it occurs as one of the subjects on smaller ones. The subject is one of the church's Twelve Festivals, which were represented on the third tier of the iconostasis (alter screen and icon stand combined), which divided the sanctuary from the nave. It depicts the Virgin's presentation in the Temple. In accordance with traditional iconography used for representing this holy fest, the Virgin, the smaller figure in the foreground, is being presented by her parents Joachim and Anna to the priest Zacharias, who holds out hands to bless her. The seven taper-bearing daughters of Zion (daughters of Israel), friends of the Virgin, stand behind Joachim and Anna. The large dimensions of this panel demonstrate the great size to which an iconostasis could attain.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Russian Government (export permit July 23, 1962); Llewellyn E. Thompson, Baltimore, 1962, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1964, by gift.
Exhibitions
| 2002-2005 | Realms of Faith: Medieval and Byzantine Art from the Walters Art Museum. Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville. |
| 2001-2002 | Realms of Faith: Medieval and Byzantine Art from the Walters Art Museum. Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville. |
Geographies
Russia (Place of Origin)
Measurements
51 x 41 3/4 in. (129.5 x 106.1 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of The Honorable Llewellyn E. Thompson, 1964
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
37.2410