The icon of Simon Ushakov "The Savior Not Made by Hands" is one of the most significant in Orthodoxy. It was created in the middle of the XVII century for the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, which is located in Sergiev Posad. Until now, thousands of believers come to worship her every year.
What is famous for Simon Ushakov?
The famous icon painter and graphic artist was Simon Ushakov. "Savior Not Made by Hands" became his most famous, but not the only work.
The icon painter was born in Moscow in 1626. Little is known about his life. Apparently, he came from the posad people. He was sent to training at the monastery at an early age, because already at the age of 22 he became a master of the Silver Chamber at the Armory Order. A very honorable place with a high salary.
Here he was directly obliged to draw objects of church utensils and palace household items, painted banners, and invented patterns for needlework. He was a full-time cartographer.
In addition, he wrote for individuals and for the church. Soon gained fame as a famous icon painter.
In the Armory
In 1664, the hero of our article was transferred to serve in the Armory. The scope of his duties has broadened, and popularity has only increased. He quickly became one of the best craftsmen under the king, having founded a whole school of icon painters.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich favored Ushakov, personally gave him all sorts of instructions on the artistic side. Thanks to this, until his death, Ushakov lived in abundance and honor.
He died in the Russian capital in 1686. He was 62 years old.
"The Savior Not Made by Hands". Simon Ushakov
1658 year. His most famous work was created by Simon Ushakov. The icon "Savior Not Made by Hands" was painted for the monastery in Sergiev Posad.
The work was done on a tree using tempera. The size of the icon is very small - 53 by 42 centimeters.
History of writing icons
Simon Ushakov painted his famous icon in Moscow. "Savior Not Made by Hands" appeared in the Trinity Church in the capital Nikitinka. It is noteworthy that the inscription was preserved at the bottom of this work. It states that this work was created by the sovereign icon painter Simon Ushakov in 1658, in 7166 from the creation of the world.
This inscription was updated in the 19th century. The icon "Savior Not Made by Hands" by Simon Ushakov is the very first image of the Savior Not Made by Hands that has survived to this day. It is known that Ushakov himself and the masters from his circle created more than one such work.
It is worth noting that in this icon Simon Ushakov showed a certain innovation. "Savior Not Made by Hands" was written in accordance with the most modern artistic techniques of that time. They determined the creative originality of Russian icon painting for many years.
This icon is distinguished from others not only by a natural transfer of facial features, but also by black-and-white modeling of volume created using a complex system in which dark and light tones alternate. In order to soften the transitions between them, at the final stage they were additionally fitted one to the other.
At the same time, it is worth noting that, unlike the European tradition, in the Russian icon the illumination of the saint's face was not motivated in any way by a real light source. And the location of the light flares indicated that Ushakov and his associates were observing the tradition that had been in Russia since the XIV century.
Ideological guidelines
A certain ideological and aesthetic reference point for Simon Ushakov was "The Savior Not Made by Hand". The year in which this icon was created (1658) was decisive for many Russian icon painters. The fact is that this image was subsequently repeatedly mentioned in the treatises of Joseph Vladimirov, which were devoted to aesthetics and the search for appropriate landmarks. By the way, he was a friend and ally of Ushakov.
In his works, Vladimirov mentioned that Christ by Ushakov was not written according to the canon. However, it is in this form that it becomes closer and more understandable to the average person. After that, many focused on the work of Simon Ushakov. "The Savior Not Made by Hands", the description of which is given in this article, became the main subject of icon painting for the coming years.
This has become the most authoritative image for any icon painter.
Ushakov's works
Simon Ushakov was an extremely prolific artist and icon painter. To this day, a lot of his works have survived. However, most of them were, unfortunately, corrupted by later restorations and records of descendants.
The icon of the Annunciation, Our Lady of Vladimir, St. Theodore Stratelates, the Descent of the Holy Spirit and, of course, the Holy Savior, are better preserved than the others today.
These works of the icon painter prove the fact that he was an extremely developed person for his time, a talented painter who fully possessed all the techniques known at that time.
Ushakov basically refused to paint icons according to ancient patterns, as was customary at that time. He actively absorbed the nuances of Western art, which in the 17th century increasingly penetrated the territory of Russia.
Ushakov, observing the traditions of the old Russian icon-painting school, was not afraid to experiment. He invented new compositions, studied on the best examples of Western culture, sought to give movement and personality to the figures on his icons.
What is the Savior Not Made by Hand?
The miraculous Savior is a special image of Christ in Russian iconography. It represents the face of the Son of God on a tile or clay board.
There are several legends about the miraculous origin of this image.
The first is eastern. According to him, the story is connected with the disease of King Edessa, who ruled in Mesopotamia, on the territory of modern Turkey. According to legend, after one of the artists sent to the king could not depict Christ, the Son of God washed his face and wiped it with a handkerchief, on which his image remained. He gave the scarf to the artist.
A remarkable fact. Since the beard of Christ was wet during washing, it was imprinted on the scarf in the form of a characteristic wedge. Since then, many researchers have also called this icon "Savior Wet Brada".
There is a western medieval tradition. It arose between the 13th and 15th centuries. More exact dates are unknown. Most likely, it appeared among the Franciscan monks.
In the legend, there is a Jewess Veronica, who accompanied Christ on his last journey to Calvary. At that moment, she handed him a linen scarf so that the Son of God could wipe sweat and blood from his face. The face of Jesus was also imprinted on her scarf. Since then, this relic has been kept in Italy, in St. Peter's Basilica under the name "Plates of Veronica".
In honor of this event, the constellation of the southern hemisphere was named, which to date has been canceled by astronomers. In its place now is the constellation Sextant.
Scientists have repeatedly made attempts to explore this image. All that they could establish: it was not applied with paint and not with organic materials.