Travel polyptych depicting the Twelve Orthodox Feasts and four miraculous apparitions of the Virgin, 19th century

Bronze casting with polychrome enamels

Height × Width: 18.5 × 41.5 cm Weight: 1244.7 g.

This artifact, a remarkable example of Old Believers’ metalwork, takes the form of a portable polyptych with four wings. These objects, generally small in size, were intended for private devotion. Their portability made them easy to carry and, if necessary, to conceal, 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. The first three wings of the polyptych illustrate the cycle of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church, the structural core of the liturgical year. Each panel is surmounted by a kokoshnik-shaped pediment depicting, from left to right: the Crucifixion of Christ, the New Testament Trinity, and the Exaltation of the Cross. The fourth wing departs thematically from the others, presenting a unified glorification of the Theotokos. It depicts four of the most venerated Marian icons in Russian tradition: the Mother of God of Tikhvin; the Mother of God of Vladimir; the Mother of God of Smolensk; and the Mother of God of the Sign (Znamenie).The pediment of this final wing is dedicated to the Praise of the Mother of God: the Virgin is enthroned at the center, surrounded by Old Testament prophets. In the upper section appears Christ Emmanuel in bust form, while in the lower register the Mesopotamian prophet Balaam is depicted. He is shown in a kneeling position, with his hand extended to point toward the star, the symbol of his famous messianic prophecy.The exterior cover features a phytomorphic frame composed of dense interlacing vegetal motifs that blend harmoniously with stylized architectural elements. At the center of the composition, within a simple oval reserve, stands the image of the Cross of Golgotha. The symbol of the Passion is set against a highly detailed scenic background, where the fortified walls of Jerusalem and the complex forms of buildings evoke the Holy City according to the visionary aesthetics of the Russian tradition.