Travel icon depicting the Nativity of the Virgin, 19th century

Bronze casting with polychrome enamels

Height × width: 9.5 × 9 cm Weight: 172.0 g.

The scene focuses on the mother, Saint Anne. The iconographic core shows Anne lying in bed, in a richly decorated interior beneath a canopy, surrounded by maidservants attending to her (bringing food or drink) and caring for the newborn. Saint Joachim is depicted apart, in the lower right corner. This icon belongs to the group of Russian Old Believer icons, produced in series from the 17th century and characterized by strict adherence to the canons of the Byzantine tradition. These artifacts, often made of bronze and sometimes enriched with colored enamels, were generally small in size and intended for private devotion. Their portability allowed them to be easily carried and, if necessary, hidden, thus meeting the religious needs of a community that, after the schism known as the Raskol, underwent periods of persecution by the official Russian Orthodox Church.