Collection Name : Metropolis of Mytiline, Eressos and Plomari
Year : 16nth century
Dimension : 113 x 111cm
Conditions : Very good
Current Place : CHURCH OF ST. MARINA
Description : The Virgin is depicted in the standard Hodegetria type. She is presented half-length, centrally located and holding the Christ Child on her left arm while her right is extended to a blessing gesture. Both gazes the viewer, accentuating the sacredness of their disposition. As it is customary in the hieratic depictions of the Virgin Hodegetria, Christ Child facial characteristics is more of a grown man rather than of a child. Virgin is clad with a dark brown maphorion, laconically decorated with sparse pleadings highlighted with almost linear lineaments. A dark blue tunic, delicately adorned with fine gold bordering at the cuffs, debouched around her head and her right arm, is elegantly rendered. Chris Child is depicted having his right hand raised in a gesture of blessing, while he is holding a closed scrolled poised on His left knee. He is depicted clad in reddish colored himation employed with rich ochre streaks schematically rendered so as to reveal plasticity in His posture. The halos of both figures can be traced against the gold background, stippled and slight relief. Christ Child halo is rendered containing a red cross and inscribed in red majuscules the initials O ΩΝ (The One Who Is). In the upper corners of the icon, the Archangels Gabriel and Michael are depicted in an attitude of prayer. The stylistic and iconographic features of the icon confronts to the trends and technical tendencies observed in 16nth century.
