Lot number 1417 - Auction 142
SELTENE IKONE MIT DER GOTTESMUTTER 'DIE BROT SCHAFFENDE' MIT SILBER-BASMA

A RARE ICON SHOWING THE MOTHER OF GOD 'PROSPERESS OF LOAVES' WITH A SILVER BASMA Russian, circa 1900 (icon), Russian, Moscow, 1896-1908 (halo) Oil on wood panel with silk backing. In this icon, the Mother of God is depicted seated upon the clouds, her hands extended in blessing. Beneath her is a field of grain, where sheaves of rye stand and lie amidst the grass and flowers. Starets Ambrose established the feast day of this icon on October 15th and named it 'Prosperess of Loaves' to emphasize that the Most Holy Mother of God helps people in their labors for the acquisition of daily bread. The borders overlaid with a silver basma embossed with leaves. The halo finely enamelled. Marked with assayer's mark, 84 standard and master's mark. 30.6 x 24 cm. This icon is a simplified depiction of the lost miraculous icon of the Mother of God "The Breadgiver," created between 1889-1890 based on the idea of Monk Ambrose of Optina for the Kazan Monastery in Shamordino. It was modeled after an icon from the Bolkhov Women's Monastery and enriched with a wheat field, representing the theme of "daily bread" from the Lord's Prayer, the Parable of the Sower, and the Second Coming (Matt. 13:24-30). Despite its initial spread, the Synod soon banned icons with this name. Smaller, simplified versions continued to be used in monasteries, including on Mount Athos. The iconography of the Mother of God with outstretched arms refers to the theme of intercession and was often depicted with a detailed, naturalistic landscape.