Travel triptych depicting Saint Nicholas of Myra, 19th century

Bronze casting with polychrome enamels

Height × width: 9 × 10.5 cm Weight: 78.4 g.

In the central panel stands a half-length figure of Saint Nicholas, depicted in majesty according to the canons of the Eastern tradition. The saint is flanked above, among the clouds, by figures of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary: the Savior presents the Gospel, while the Mother of God holds the episcopal omophorion. This iconography, known as the “Miracle of Nicaea,” symbolizes Nicholas’s divine investiture and the restoration of his episcopal dignity by a heavenly hand. Above the central panel is a cimasa featuring the Old Testament Trinity, symmetrically flanked by two seraphim; the composition is crowned at the top by the Mandylion of Edessa, the acheropita image of Christ’s face, which seals the entire work as a sign of protection and supreme divine authority. The side panels depict four of the principal mysteries of the liturgical year: the Entry into Jerusalem and the Presentation in the Temple, followed by the Paschal scenes of the Anastasis (Descent into Hell) and the Ascension. These representations frame the central figure of Saint Nicholas, placing his devotion within the broader cycle of Salvation and Christ’s triumph over death. Such artifacts, 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, experienced periods of persecution by the official Russian Orthodox Church.