Vladimir Mother of God Icon, egg tempera and gilt on wood, 1800s
from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art.

This Vladimir Mother of God icon belongs to a collection of 36 icons dating from the 18th and 19th centuries now on exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of History. Icon is from the Greek word, eikona, which means image, and is not considered by the Eastern Orthodox Church to be an idol or object of worship.

North Carolina Museum of History Curator Jeanne Marie Warzeski said the original Mother of God of Vladimir icon received legendary status because Apostle Luke was believed to be the artist.

“It was first brought from Constantinople as a gift of the Greek Patriarch Luke Chrysoberges to the Grand Prince of Kiev, Yuri Dolgoruky, in the 1100s,” said Dr. Warzeski. “Then it was taken north to Vladimir, where it got its name, and finally to Moscow, to protect that city from the Mongolian conqueror Tamerlane’s invasion of the East.”

Russian churches adopted the ancient tradition of painting icons when the country converted to Byzantine Christianity in 988. The icons are venerated as conduits to God and a focus for the prayers and meditation of Eastern Orthodox Christians. The religious images often crafted by monks or nuns brought consolation to worshippers in times of sorrow or hardship.

The Vladimir Mother of God is a classic Eleusa (Greek for tender mercy) icon, so-called because the heads of Mary and the Christ child incline in a “tender” cheek-to-cheek embrace,” said Dr. Warzeski. She noted the “gentle sadness” on Mary’s face that artists’ throughout history have tried to capture.

Visitors to the history museum for the Windows into Heaven: Russian Icons from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art will recognize many familiar Christian themes showing the apostles and saints, as well as the less familiar representations of the Old Testament Trinity. Most Orthodox homes have an area of their home set aside for family prayers with icons (often illuminated by a candle) on display to bring light into the world through worship. Tales exist about the restorative healing power of icons through the conduit of the saint they represent.

Windows into Heaven is on display at the Museum of History in Raleigh through March 5.