The icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands occupies a special place in icon painting, and an extensive literature is devoted to it. Tradition says that the icon we know is a hand-made copy of a wonderfully found original. According to legend, in 544 A.D. two images of Jesus not made by hands were found in the gate niche of the wall of the city of Edessa. When the niche was opened, a candle was burning in it and there was a board with a wonderful image, which at the same time turned out to be imprinted on the ceramic tiles that covered the niche. Thus, two versions of the image immediately arose: Mandylion (on the board) and Keramion (on the tile). In 944, Mandylion moved to Constantinople, and two decades later Ceramion followed the same path. According to the testimonies of pilgrims, both relics were kept in vessels-arks, suspended on chains in one of the naves of the Temple of Our Lady of Pharos, the home church of the Emperor / 1-4 /. This famous church was also home to other relics of comparable significance. The vessels were never opened and both relics were never shown, but the lists began to appear and spread throughout the Christian world, gradually taking the form of the iconographic canon known to us. After the sack of Constantinople by the crusaders in 1204, Mandylion supposedly ended up in Paris, was kept there until 1793, and disappeared during the French Revolution.

There are several versions of the legend about the original origin of Mandylion. The most popular narrative in the Middle Ages is called epistula Avgari in the scientific literature and can be found in its entirety in / 4, 5 /. The king Abgar of Edesa, sick with leprosy, sent a letter to Jesus asking him to come and heal him. Jesus responded with a letter that later became widely known as an independent relic, but did not heal Abgar. Then Abgar sent an artist-servant to paint the image of Jesus and bring it with him. The arriving servant found Jesus in Jerusalem and tried to sketch him. Seeing the failure of his attempts, Jesus asked for water. He washed and wiped himself with a cloth, on which His face was miraculously imprinted. The servant took the board with him and, according to some versions of the story, the Apostle Thaddeus went with him. Passing the city of Hierapolis, the servant hid the boards in a pile of tiles for the night. At night, a miracle happened and the image of the board was imprinted on one of the tiles. A servant left these shingles in Hierapolis. Thus, a second Keramion appeared - the Hierapolis one, which also eventually ended up in Constantinople, but was of lesser importance than the Edesian one. At the end of the story, the servant returns to Edessa, and Avgar is healed by touching the wonderful towel. Avgar placed the boards in the gate niche for general worship. During the times of persecution, the relic was immured in a niche for the sake of preservation, and it was forgotten for several centuries.

The story of St. Mandylion is often confused with the story of the Veronica plate, a separate relic kept in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and belonging to the Western tradition. According to legend, on the day of the crucifixion, St. Veronica gave a towel to Jesus, exhausted under the weight of his cross, and he wiped his face, which had been imprinted on the towel, with it. Some believe that this is the history of the emergence of the icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands, i.e. Mandylion, but it is a completely independent relic, an independent narrative and an independent portrayal that has other typical features. On most iconographic versions of Veronica's board, Jesus' eyes are closed and facial features are different than on Mandylion. Its head is crowned with a crown of thorns, which is consistent with the situation of the story. On Mandylion, eyes are open, there is no crown of thorns, Jesus' hair and beard are wet, which is consistent with the story of Abgar's servant, in which Jesus dries himself with a towel after washing. The cult of the Veronica fee arose relatively late, around the 12th century. Some famous icons associated with this cult are actually versions of St. Mandylion and are of Byzantine or Slavic origin / 6, 7 /.

In this essay, I reflect on the amazing charisma of this one-of-a-kind icon, I try to bring together and formulate different aspects of its symbolic meaning and solve the riddle of its attractive power.

THE SAVIOR'S LIKE

The Savior Not Made by Hands is the only icon depicting Jesus simply as a person, as a person with a face. The rest of the iconic images of Jesus show Him performing some action or contain indications of His attributes. Here He sits on the throne (which means He is the King), here He blesses, here He holds a book in His hands and points to the words written there. The plurality of images of Jesus is theologically correct, but it can hide the basic truth of Christianity: salvation comes precisely through the person of Jesus, through Jesus as such, and not through some of his individual actions or attributes. According to Christian teaching, the Lord sent us His Son as the only way to salvation. He Himself is the beginning and end of the path, alpha and omega. He saves us by the very fact of his eternal presence in the world. We follow him not because of any obligations or reasoning or customs, but because He calls us. We love him not for something, but simply because he is, i.e. about the same as we love, not always explainable by the love of the chosen ones or the chosen ones of our hearts. It is to this attitude towards Jesus, an attitude that is highly personal, that the image depicted on St. Mandylion corresponds.

This icon strongly and clearly expresses the very essence of the Christian life - the need for everyone to establish a personal relationship with God through Jesus. From this icon, Jesus looks at us like no other, which is facilitated by exaggeratedly large and slightly slanted eyes. This Jesus does not look at humanity in general, but at a specific viewer and expects an equally personal response. Having met His gaze, it is difficult to hide from ruthless thoughts about yourself and your relationship with Him.

A portrait icon gives a much greater sense of direct contact than an icon with a narrative content. If a narrative icon conveys a story, then a portrait icon expresses presence. The portrait icon does not distract attention to clothing, objects, or gestures. Jesus is not here blessing or offering verbal formulas of salvation to hide behind. He only offers Himself. He is the Way and Salvation. The rest of the icons are about Him, and here He is.

PHOTO PORTRAIT

St. Mandylion is a one-of-a-kind ‘photographic portrait’ of Jesus. This is actually not a drawing, but a face print, a photograph in the literal material sense. Being a stylistically neutral image of a face as such, our icon has something in common with the not too honorable, but absolutely necessary and widespread genre of passport photo in our life. Just like in passport photos, it is the face that is depicted here, and not the character or thoughts. This is just a portrait, not a psychological portrait.

The usual photographic portrait depicts the person himself, and not his vision of the artist. If the artist replaces the original with an image that meets his subjective vision, then a portrait photo captures the original as it is physically. So it is with this icon. Jesus is not interpreted here, not transformed, not deified and not comprehended - He is as He is. Let us remind you that God in the Bible is repeatedly called “existing” and says about himself that He is “what He is”.

SYMMETRY

Among other iconic images, the Savior Not Made by Hands is unique in its symmetry. In most versions, the Face of Jesus is almost completely mirror-symmetrical, with the exception of the slanting eyes, the movement of which gives life to the face and spiritualizes it / 8 /. This symmetry reflects, in particular, a fundamentally important fact of creation - the mirror symmetry of a person's appearance. Many other elements of God's creation (animals, plant elements, molecules, crystals) are also symmetrical. Space, the main arena of creation, itself has a high degree of symmetry. The Orthodox Church is also symmetrical, and the Image Not Made by Hands often takes place in it on the main plane of symmetry, linking the symmetry of architecture with the asymmetry of icon painting. He, as it were, attaches to the walls a carpet of temple paintings and icons, which is dynamic in its diversity and color.

Since, according to the Bible, man was created in the image and likeness of God, it can be assumed that symmetry is one of the attributes of God. The Savior Not Made by Hands thus expresses the symmetry of God, creation, man and temple space.

THE GENIUS OF PURE BEAUTY

In the title of the 12th century Novgorod icon from the Tretyakov Gallery (this is the oldest Russian icon of the Savior), St. Lik expresses the late antique ideal of beauty. Symmetry is just one aspect of this ideal. Jesus' features do not express pain and suffering. This ideal look is free from passions and emotions. He sees heavenly tranquility and peace, sublimity and purity. This combination of the aesthetic and the spiritual, the beautiful and the Divine, which is just as strongly expressed in the icons of the Mother of God, reminds us that beauty will save the world.

The type of Jesus' face is close to what is called "heroic" in Hellenistic art and has common features with the late antique images of Zeus / 9 /. This ideal Face expresses the union in the single person of Jesus of two natures - the Divine and the human and was used in that era on other icons of Christ.

CIRCLE CLOSES

The Savior Not Made by Hands is the only icon in which the halo has the shape of a completely closed circle. The circle expresses the perfection and harmony of the world order. The position of the face in the center of the circle expresses the completeness and completeness of Jesus' act of saving mankind and His central role in the universe.

The image of the head in a circle also reminds of the head of Ionne the Forerunner, laid on a dish, who preceded Jesus' journey of the cross with his suffering. The image of the head on a round dish also has obvious Eucharistic associations. The round halo containing the face of Jesus is symbolically repeated in the round prosphora containing His body.

CIRCLE AND SQUARE

On the Novgorod icon, a circle is inscribed in a square. The opinion was expressed that the geometricity of this icon creates the image of the paradox of the Incarnation through the idea of ​​squaring the circle, i.e. as a combination of incompatible / 10 /. The circle and square represent Heaven and Earth symbolically. According to the cosmogony of the ancients, the Earth is a flat square, and the Sky is the sphere along which the Moon, the Sun and the planets revolve, i.e. the world of the Divine. This symbolism can be found in the architecture of any temple: a square or rectangular floor symbolically corresponds to the Earth, and the vault or dome of the ceiling - to Heaven. Therefore, the combination of a square and a circle is a fundamental archetype that expresses the structure of the Cosmos and is of particular importance in this case, since Christ, having incarnated, united Heaven and Earth. It is interesting that a circle inscribed in a square (as well as a square inscribed in a circle), as a symbolic display of the structure of the Universe, is used in the mandala, the main icon of Tibetan Buddhism. The motif of a square inscribed in a circle can also be seen in the icon of the Savior in the drawing of a cross halo.

FACE AND CROSS

The crumbling halo is a canonical element of almost all major types of Jesus icons. From the point of view of the modern viewer, the combination of a head with a cross looks like an element of a crucifixion. In fact, the imposition of a face on a cruciform motif rather reflects the end result of a kind of competition between the images of the cross and the Face of Jesus for the right to serve as the state emblem of the Roman Empire. Emperor Constantine made the cross the main symbol of his power and the imperial standard. Icons of Christ have replaced the cross on state images since the 6th century. The first combination of a cross with an icon of Jesus was, apparently, a round image of Jesus, attached to military crosses-standards, in the same way as the portraits of the emperor were attached to the same standards / 11 /. Thus, the combination of Jesus with the cross indicated rather His authoritative authority than the role of the Sacrifice / 9 (see chapter 6) /. It is not surprising that an identical cross-shaped halo is also present on the icon of Christ the Almighty, in which the role of Christ as Lord is especially emphasized.

The letters depicted in the three crossbeams of the cross convey the transcription of the Greek word "o-omega-n", meaning "existing", i.e. the so-called heavenly name of God, which is pronounced "he-on", where "he" is the article.

‘AZ IS THE DOOR’

The icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands is often placed above the entrance to a sacred room or space. Let's remember that he was found in a niche above the gates of the city of Edessa. In Russia, it was also often placed above the gates of cities or monasteries, as well as in churches above the entrance doors or above the royal gates of altars. At the same time, the sacredness of the space protected by the icon is emphasized, which thereby becomes likened to the God-protected city of Edessa / 1 /.

There is another aspect here as well. Emphasizing that the path to God lies only through Him, Jesus calls himself a door, an entrance (John 10: 7,9). Since the sacred space is associated with the Kingdom of Heaven, passing under the icon to the temple or altar, we symbolically do what the Gospel invites us to, i.e. we pass through Jesus into the Kingdom of Heaven.

HEAD AND BODY

St. Mandylion is the only icon that shows only the head of Jesus, even without the shoulders. The immateriality of the face speaks of the primacy of the spirit over the body and gives rise to multiple associations. The head without a body reminds of the earthly death of Jesus and creates the image of the Sacrifice, both in the sense of his crucifixion and in the sense of the Eucharistic associations mentioned above. The image of one Face corresponds to the Orthodox theology of the icon, according to which a person is depicted on icons, and not human nature / 12 /.

The image of the head also recalls the image of Christ as the Head of the Church (Ephesus 1: 22,23). If Jesus is the Head of the Church, then believers are her body. The face continues downward with expanding wet hair lines. Continuing down into the space of the temple, these lines seem to cover the believers, who thereby become the Body, expressing the fullness of church existence. On the Novgorod icon, the direction of the hair is emphasized by sharply drawn white lines dividing individual strands.

HOW LOOKED ST. MANDILION?

Judging by the historical evidence, the Edesian Mandylion was an image on a board stretched over a small board and kept in a closed casket / 2 /. Probably there was a gold frame, which left only the face, beard and hair exposed. The Bishop of Samosata, tasked with bringing St. Mandylion from Edessa, had to choose the script from among four applicants. This suggests that already in Edessa, from Mandylion, copies were made, which were also images on a cloth basis stretched on a board. These copies apparently served as the beginning of the tradition of images of the Image Not Made by Hands, since there is no information about the copying of Mandylion in Constantinople. Since icons in general are usually painted on a fabric base (pavolok) stretched over a board, St. Mandylion is a proto-icon, the prototype of all icons. Of the surviving images, several icons of Byzantine origin that have survived in Italy are considered the closest to the original, the dating of which is being debated. On these icons, the Holy Face has natural dimensions, the features of the face are oriental (Syro-Palestinian) / 13 /.

TABLET OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

The meaning of the Mandylion in Byzantium was comparable to that of the Tablets of the Covenant in ancient Israel. The tablets were the central relic of the Old Testament tradition. On them by God himself were inscribed the commandments that constituted the main content of the Old Testament. The presence of the Tablets in the Tabernacle and the Temple confirmed the authenticity of the Divine origin of the commandments. Since the main thing in the New Testament is Christ himself, the Holy Mandylion is a tablet of the New Testament, its visible God-given image. This motive clearly sounds in the official Byzantine narrative about the history of Mandylion, in which the story of its transfer to Constantinople is consonant with the Biblical narrative about the transfer of the tablets to Jerusalem by David / 14 /. Like the tablets, Mandylion was never shown. Even the emperors, worshiping Mandylion, kissed the closed chest. As the tablet of the New Testament, St. Mandylion became the central relic of the Byzantine Empire.

ICON AND RELICION

Byzantine piety strove for the synthesis of icons and relics / 15 /. Icons often arose as a result of the desire to "multiply" the relic, to consecrate the entire Christian world to it, and not just a small part of the space. The icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands reminded not only of the reality of the earthly life of the Savior, but also of the reality and authenticity of the Holy Plate himself. The connection with the relic is indicated by the folds of matter depicted on many versions of the icon of St. Mandylion. The icons of St. Keramion depict the same face, but the background has the texture of tiles.

However, the direct connection with the relic was not always emphasized. On the icon presented in the title, the Face is depicted on a uniform gold background, symbolizing the Divine Light. In this way, the effect of Jesus' presence is enhanced, His divinity and the fact of the Incarnation are emphasized, as well as the fact that the source of salvation is Jesus himself, and not a relic. Wolf / 10 / points to the “monumentalization” of the Face, freed from the tissue base, its movement from matter into the sphere of spiritual contemplation. It was also hypothesized that the gold background of the Novgorod icon copies the gold setting of the prototype icon / 16 /. The Novgorod icon was processional, portable, which explains its large size (70x80cm). Since the face is larger than a human face, this image could not claim to be a direct copy of St. Mandylion and served as his symbolic substitute in the services of Holy Week and the holiday of the icon on August 16.

It is interesting that the reverse side of the Novgorod Mandylion just illustrates the use of icons to “multiply” relics. It presents a scene of the Adoration of the Cross / 17 /, containing the image of all the main passionate relics from the Church of Our Lady of Pharos (crown of thorns, sponge, spear, etc. / 4 /). Since in ancient times the image was considered as a substitute for the depicted one, our icon created in the space of the Novgorod temple a kind of equivalent of the Church of Our Lady of Pharos - the main temple-reliquary of Byzantium.

The Incarnation and the Consecration of the Mother

The Incarnation is unanimously recognized as the core theme of the Mandylion. Although the appearance of Christ in the material world is the theme of any icon, the story of the miraculous display of the Face of Christ on the board not only confirms with particular clarity the doctrine of the Incarnation, but also creates an image of the continuation of this process after the earthly death of Jesus. Leaving the world, Christ leaves in it his "imprints" on the souls of believers. Just as St. Mandylion, by the power of the Holy Spirit, passed from a board to a tile, the same power is transferred to the image of God from heart to heart. In church icon painting, Mandylion and Keramion are sometimes placed opposite each other at the base of the dome, which recreates the situation of a miraculous reproduction of the image / 1 /.

St. Mandylion occupies a special place both among icons and among relics. Many relics are common items, unique due to their proximity to the Divine (for example, the belt of the Mother of God). Mandylion, on the other hand, was matter directly changed by purposeful Divine influence and can be regarded as a prototype of the transformed materiality of the next century. The reality of the transformation of the Mandylion fabric confirms the real possibility of deification of a person already in this world and portends his transformation in the future, and not in the form of an incorporeal soul, but as a renewed materiality, in which the Image of God will in the same way "shine through" through human nature, like St. The face shines through the fabric of Mandylion.

The image of the fabric on the icons of the Savior Not Made by Hands has a deeper meaning than just an illustration of the naturalness of St. Plate. The Cloth Plate is an image of the material world, already sanctified by the presence of Christ, but still awaiting the coming deification. This is a multivalued image reflecting both the potential deification of the matter of our world today (as in the Eucharist) and its future complete deification. The cloth Plate also denotes the person himself, in whom Christ has the power to reveal his image. Associated with this circle of images is the Eucharistic meaning of the Mandylion. The image of St. Face that appears on Mandylion is similar to the Body of Christ existing ontologically in the Eucharistic bread. The image not made by hands does not illustrate, but complements the sacrament: that which is not visible in the Eucharist is accessible to contemplation on the icon. Not surprisingly, St. Mandylion was widely used in the iconographic programs of altarpieces / 18,19 /.

The question of the nature of Mandylion, like the paradox of the Incarnation itself, is difficult for rational comprehension. Mandylion is not an illustration of the Incarnation, but a living example of the incarnation of the Divine into the material. How is the sanctity of Mandylion to be understood? Is the image itself holy, or is the material holy too? In Byzantium in the 12th century, there was a serious theological debate on this topic. The discussion ended with the official statement about the sanctity of only the image, although the practice of venerating this and other relics testifies rather to the opposite.

BANNER OF ICON REVIEW

If the pagans worshiped “Gods made by men” (Acts 19:26), then Christians could oppose this with the Image Not Made by Hands, as a material image made by God. Jesus' creation of his own image was the strongest argument in favor of veneration of icons. The icon of the Savior occupies an honorable place in the iconographic programs of Byzantine churches shortly after the victory over iconoclasm.

The Legend of Avgar deserves a careful reading, as it contains theologically significant ideas related to the veneration of icons:

(1) Jesus wanted His image;

(2) He sent His image in place of Himself, thereby confirming the legitimacy of honoring the image as His representative;

(3) He sent the image in response to Abgar's request for healing, which directly confirms the miraculousness of the icon, as well as the potential healing power of other contact relics.

(4) The letter sent before this does not heal Avgar, which is consistent with the fact that the copies of the sacred texts, despite the practice of worshiping them, as a rule, do not play the role of miraculous relics in the Orthodox tradition.

In the legend about Avgar, the role of the artist is also noteworthy, who is unable to draw Christ on his own, but brings the customer an image drawn according to the Divine will. This emphasizes that the icon painter is not an artist in the usual sense, but the executor of God's plan.

NON-CREATIVE IMAGE IN RUSSIA

The veneration of the Image Not Made by Hands came to Russia in the 11-12 centuries and spreads especially widely since the second half of the 14th century. In 1355, the newly appointed Moscow Metropolitan Alexy brought from Constantinople a copy of St. Mandilion, for which a reliquary temple was immediately founded / 7 /. The veneration of copies of St. Mandylion was introduced as a state cult: throughout the country, churches, monasteries and temple side-altars began to appear, dedicated to the Image of Not Made by Hands and receiving the name "Spassky". Before the icon of the Savior, Dmitry Donskoy, a pupil of Metropolitan Alexy, prayed, having received news of Mamai's attack. A banner with an icon of the Savior accompanied the Russian army on campaigns from the Battle of Kulikovo up to the First World War. These banners are beginning to be called "signs" or "banners"; the word "banner" replaces the Old Russian "banner". Icons of the Savior are placed on the fortress towers. Just as in Byzantium, the Savior Not Made by Hands becomes the guardian of the city and country. Images for home use are distributed, as well as miniature images of the Savior, used as amulets / 20 /. Church buildings in book illustrations and icons are beginning to be depicted with the icon of the Savior above the entrance as a designation of the Christian church. The Savior becomes one of the central images of Russian Orthodoxy, close in meaning and meaning to the cross and crucifixion.

Probably, Metropolitan Alexy himself was the initiator of the use of the Non-Creative Image in the iconostases, which acquire a look close to the modern one precisely in this era / 7 /. In this regard, a new type of huge icons of the Savior appeared with a face size much larger than the natural one. The Holy Face on these icons acquires the features of the Heavenly Jesus, Christ the Judge of the Last Day / 21 /, which was consonant with the widespread expectations of the near end of the world in that era. This theme was also present in Western Christianity at that time. Dante in the Divine Comedy used the iconography of St. Face to describe the contemplation of the Divine on the Day of Judgment / 7 /.

The image of the Savior acquired new shades of meaning in the context of the ideas of hesychasm. The images of Mandylion, especially on large icons, seem to be “charged” with uncreated energy, radiating unearthly power. It is no coincidence that in one of the stories about Mandylion the image itself becomes a source of uncreated Light, similar to Tabor / 14 /. A new interpretation of the theme of the transforming light of Tabor appears on the icons of Simon Ushakov (17th century), on which the Holy Face itself becomes a source of unearthly radiance / 22 /.

SERVICE ICON

The general ecclesiastical character of the worship of St. Mandylion was expressed in the existence of the feast of the icon on August 16, the day of the transfer of the relic from Edessa to Constantinople. On this day, special biblical readings and stichera are read, expressing theological ideas associated with the icon / 12 /. The stichera conveys the above legend about Avgar to the holiday. The Bible readings set out the most important stages in the history of the Incarnation. The Old Testament readings remind of the impossibility of depicting God, who remained invisible, while the Gospel readings contain the key phrase for Mandylion's theology: "And, turning to the disciples, he said to them especially: blessed are the eyes that saw what you see!" (Luke 10:23).

There is also a canon for the miraculous image, the authorship of which is attributed to St. Herman of Constantinople / 12 /.

LITERATURE

/ 1 / A. M. Lidov. Hierotopy. Spatial icons and images-paradigms in Byzantine culture. M. Theoria. 2009. The chapters "Mandylion and Keramion" and "Holy Face - Holy Letter - Holy Gates" are most closely related to our theme, p. 111-162.

/ 2 / A. M. Lidov. Holy Mandillion. Relic history. In the book "Savior Not Made by Hands in the Russian Icon". M. 2008, p. 12-39.

/ 3 / Robert de Clari. Conquest of Constantinople. M. 1986. p. 59-60.

/ 4 / Relics in Byzantium and Ancient Rus. Written sources (editor-compiler A.M. Lidov). M. Progress-Tradition, 2006. Part 5. Relics of Constantinople, pp. 167-246. The epistula Avgari text can be found in Part 7. p. 296-300.

/ 5 / E. Meshcherskaya. Apocryphal acts of the apostles. New Testament Apocrypha in Syrian Literature. M. Pristsels, 1997.455 p. See the chapter "Old Russian version of the legend of Avgar based on a 13th century manuscript"

http://www.gumer.info/bogoslov_Buks/apokrif/Avgar_Russ.php. This version of Epistula Avgari was popular in medieval Russia.

/ 6 / In Rome there were several ancient images of Christ of Byzantine origin, including several copies of St. Mandylion. According to L.M. Evseeva / 7 / their images converged and by the 15th century the famous image of Christ was formed from the Plate of Veronica with long symmetrical strands of hair and a short, slightly forked beard, see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veil_of_Veronica

This iconographic type also influenced the later Russian icons of the Savior. It is also suggested that the name "Veronica" comes from "vera icona" (true image): originally the Roman copies of St. Mandylion were called so, then the legend of Veronica arose and Platus Veronica himself appeared, the first reliable information about which dates back to 1199.

/ 7 / L.M. Evseeva. The Image of Christ Not Made by Hands "by Metropolitan Alexy (1354-1378) in the context of the eschatological ideas of the time. In the book "Savior Not Made by Hands in the Russian Icon". M. 2008, p. 61-81.

/ 8 / On many icons of the Savior (including the Novgorod icon in the illustration), one can notice a slight deliberate asymmetry of the face, which, as shown by N. B. Teteryatnikova, contributes to the "revival" of the icon: the face, as it were, "turns" towards the viewer looking on the icon at an angle. N. Teteriatnikov. Animated icons on interactive display: the case of Hagia Sophia, Constantinople. In the book “Spatial Icons. Performative in Byzantium and Ancient Rus ”, ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov, M. Indrik, 2011, pp. 247-274.

/ 9 / H. Belting. Likeness and presence. A history of image before the era of art. Ch. 11. The Holy Face. The University of Chicago Press, 1992.

/ 10 / G. Wolf. Holy face and holy feet: preliminary reflections before the Novgorod Mandylion. From the collection "Eastern Christian Relics", ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov. M. 2003, 281-290.

/ 11 / There are few crosses with portraits of emperors. The earliest example is a 10th century cross with a portrait of Emperor Augustus, kept in the treasury of the Aachen Cathedral and used in the coronation ceremonies of the emperors of the Carolingian dynasty. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_of_Lothair

/ 12 / L. I. Uspensky. Theology of the icon of the Orthodox Church. M. 2008. Ch. 8 "Iconoclastic doctrine and the response to it of the church", p. 87-112.

/ 13 / See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Holy_Face_-_Genoa.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:39bMandylion.jpg

/ 14 / The story of the transfer of the Image Not Made by Hands from Edessa to Constantinople. In the book "Savior Not Made by Hands in the Russian Icon". M. 2008, p. 415-429. Interestingly, in another Byzantine work, the set of passionate relics kept in the church of Our Lady of Pharos is compared with the Decalogue (ten commandments).

/ 15 / I. Shalina. Icon "Christ in the grave" and the image not made by hands on the Shroud of Constantinople. From the collection "Eastern Christian Relics", ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov. M. 2003, p. 305-336. http://nesusvet.narod.ru/ico/books/tourin/

/ 16 / I.A. Sterligova. Precious dress of ancient Russian icons of the XI-XIV centuries. M. 2000, p. 136-138.s.

/ 17 / The reverse side of the Novgorod Mandylion:

http://all-photo.ru/icon/index.ru.html?big=on&img=28485

/ 18 / Sh. Gerstel. Miraculous Mandylion. The Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands in Byzantine Iconographic Programs. From the collection "The Miraculous Icon in Byzantium and Ancient Rus", ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov. M. "Martis", 1996. S. 76-89.

http://nesusvet.narod.ru/ico/books/gerstel.htm.

/ 19 / M. Emanuel. Savior Not Made by Hands in the iconographic programs of the churches of Mystra. From the collection "Eastern Christian Relics", ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov. M. 2003, p. 291-304.

/ 20 / A. V. Ryndin. Reliquary image. Savior Not Made by Hands in Small Forms of Russian Art XIV-XVI. From the collection "Eastern Christian Relics", ed.-comp. A.M. Lidov. M. 2003, p. 569-585.

/ 21 / For an example of such iconography see.

http://www.icon-art.info/masterpiece.php?lng=ru&mst_id=719

/ 22 / The image of the Savior was the main, programmatic one for Ushakov and was repeated by him many times. Unlike ancient icons, where Divine light is transmitted by the background and spreads over the entire plane of the icon, in Ushakov's "uncreated light" shines through the face itself. Ushakov strove to combine the Orthodox principles of icon painting with new technical methods that made it possible to convey the Holy Face “with light, ruddy, shade, shade and life-like”. The new style was approved by most of his contemporaries, but drew criticism from zealots of antiquity, who called Ushakov's Savior "a puffy German." Many believe that Ushakov's "light-like" faces convey physical, created rather than uncreated light, and that this style meant the disintegration of the Byzantine icon image and its replacement by the aesthetics of Western art, in which the beautiful takes the place of the sublime.

http://www.tretyakovgallery.ru/ru/collection/_show/image/_id/2930#

Origin

There are two groups of legends about the origin of the relic, which served as the source of iconography, each of which informs about its miraculous origin.

Reconstruction of the Constantinople Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands

Eastern version of the legend

The eastern version of the legend about the Image Not Made by Hands can be traced in Syrian sources from the 4th century. The image of Christ not made by hands was captured for the king of Edessa (Mesopotamia, modern city of Sanliurfa, Turkey) Avgar V Ukkama after the artist sent by him failed to depict Christ: Christ washed his face, wiped it off with a cloth (cloth), on which an imprint remained, and handed it to the artist. Thus, according to legend, Mandylion became the first icon in history.

A linen cloth with the image of Christ was kept in Edessa for a long time as the most important treasure of the city. During the period of iconoclasm, John of Damascus referred to the Not-Made-by-Hands, and in 787 the Seventh Ecumenical Council, citing it as the most important evidence in favor of the veneration of icons. On August 29, 944, the image was bought from Edessa by Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus and solemnly transferred to Constantinople, this day entered the church calendar as a general church holiday. The relic was stolen from Constantinople during the plundering of the city by the participants of the IV Crusade in 1204, after which it was lost (according to legend, the ship carrying the icon was wrecked).

The closest to the original image are considered the Mandylion from the temple of San Silvestro in Capite, which is now in the chapel of Santa Matilda of the Vatican, and the Mandylion, which has been kept in the church of St. Bartholomew in Genoa since 1384. Both icons are painted on canvas, mounted on wooden bases, have the same format (approximately 29x40 cm) and are covered with a flat silver frame cut along the contours of the head, beard and hair. In addition, the form of the original relic can be evidenced by the shutters of the triptych with the now lost centerpiece from the monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai. According to the most daring hypotheses, the "original" Savior Not Made by Hands, sent to Avgar, served as the middle man.

Western version of the legend

Holy Face of Manoppello

The western version of the legend originated from various sources from the 13th to the 15th century, most likely among the Franciscan monks. According to him, the pious Jewess Veronica, who accompanied Christ on His journey of the cross to Calvary, gave Him a linen handkerchief so that Christ could wipe the blood and sweat from his face. The face of Jesus is imprinted on the kerchief. A relic called " Veronica's boards"Is kept in the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome. Presumably, the name of Veronica at the mention of the Image Not Made by Hands arose as a distortion of lat. vera icon (true image). In Western iconography, a distinctive feature of the images of Veronica's Plaque is the crown of thorns on the Savior's head.

The now canceled constellation was once called in honor of the "Veronica's Fee". On the scarf, in the light, you can see the image of the face of Jesus Christ. Attempts to examine the image have established that the image was not applied with paint or any known organic material. At this time, scientists intend to continue research.

At least two "Veronica's Pay" are known: 1. in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican and 2. "The Face of Manoppello", which is also called "Veronica's Veil", but there is no crown of thorns on it, the drawing is positive, the proportions of the parts of the face are disturbed (the lower eyelid of the left eye is very different from the right, etc. ), which allows us to conclude that this is a list from the "Savior Not Made by Hands" sent to Avgar, and not from the "Veronica's Plate".

The version of the connection of the image with the Turin Shroud

There are theories linking the Not-Made-by-Hands Image of the Savior with another well-known common Christian relic - the Turin Shroud. The Shroud is a full-length depiction of Christ on canvas. The plates with the image of the Savior exhibited in Edessa and Constantinople, according to theories, could have been a shroud folded several times, so the original icon might not have been lost during the Crusades, but taken to Europe and found in Turin. In addition, one of the tricks of the Image Not Made by Hands is “ Savior Not Made by Hands - Do not weep for Me, Mati» ( Christ in the grave) researchers are being raised to the shroud as a historical prototype.

Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands in Russian letter

First samples. The beginning of the Russian tradition

Icons of the Savior Not Made by Hands fall on Russia, according to some sources, already in the 9th century. The oldest surviving icon of this iconographic type is the Novgorod Savior Not Made by Hands (second half of the 12th century). The following iconographic types of the Image Not Made by Hands can be distinguished: “ Spas on the cleanup" or simply " Ubrus", Where the face of Christ is placed on the image of a plate (ubrus) of a light shade and" Savior on a chrepia" or simply " Rape"(Meaning" tile "," brick ")," Ceramide". According to legend, the image of Christ appeared on the tiles or bricks that hid the niche with the icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands. Occasionally, on this type of icons, the background is an image of a brick or tiled masonry, more often the background is simply given in a darker (compared to the trim) color.

Out of the water

The most ancient images were performed on a blank background, without any hint of matter or tiles. The image of a flat rectangular or slightly curved trim as a background is already found on the fresco of the Church of the Savior on Nereditsa (Novgorod) at the end of the 12th century. Ubrus with folds began to spread from the second half of the 13th century, primarily in Byzantine and South Slavic icon painting, and on Russian icons from the 14th century. Since the 15th century, two angels can hold a draped board by its upper ends. In addition, various versions of the icon " Savior Not Made by Hands with Deeds”, When the image of Christ in the centerpiece of the icon is surrounded by stamps with the history of the image. From the end of the 17th century. in Russian icon painting, under the influence of Catholic painting, images of Christ appear in a crown of thorns on a board, that is, in iconography “ Veronica's Plath". Images of the Savior with a wedge-shaped beard (converging to one or two narrow ends) are also known in Byzantine sources, however, only on Russian soil did they take shape in a separate iconographic type and received the name “ Spas Wet Brada».

The collection of the State Museum of Art of Georgia contains an encaustic icon of the 7th century, called “ Anchiskhat Savior", Representing Christ across the chest and is considered the" original "Edesian icon.

The Christian tradition considers the Image of Christ not made by hands as one of the proofs of the truthfulness of the incarnation of the second person of the Trinity in the human image, and in a narrower sense - as the most important evidence in favor of veneration of icons.

Traditionally, the icon "Savior Not Made by Hands" is the first independent image that is entrusted to be painted by an icon painter who has completed his apprenticeship.

Various images of the Savior

Vyatka Savior Not Made by Hands

Until 1917, a list of the miraculous Vyatka Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands hung from the inside over the Spassky Gate of the Moscow Kremlin. The icon itself was brought from Khlynov (Vyatka) and left in the Moscow Novospassky monastery in 1647. The exact list was sent to Khlynov, and the second was installed over the gates of the Frolov tower. In honor of the image of the Savior and the fresco of the Savior of Smolensk, on the outside, the gate through which the icon was delivered and the tower itself were named Spassky.

A distinctive feature of the Vyatka Savior Not Made by Hands is the image of angels standing on the sides, whose figures are not fully spelled out. Angels do not stand on the clouds, but seem to float in the air. It is possible to single out peculiar features of the face of Christ. A slightly elongated face with a high forehead is frontally depicted on the vertically hanging cloth of the trim with wavy folds. It is inscribed in the plane of the icon board so that large eyes endowed with great expressiveness become the center of the composition. Christ's gaze is directed directly at the viewer, his eyebrows are raised high. Lush hair falls in long strands flying to the side, three to the left and three to the right. The short beard is split in two. Strands of hair and beard extend beyond the circumference of the halo. The eyes are written lightly and transparently, their gaze has the attractiveness of a real gaze. The face of Christ expresses calmness, mercy and meekness.

After 1917, the original icon in the Novospassky Monastery and the copy over the Spassky Gate were lost. Nowadays, the monastery keeps a list of the 19th century, which occupies the place of the original in the iconostasis of the Transfiguration Cathedral. The list left in Vyatka was kept until 1929, after which it was also lost.

In June 2010, with the help of Galina Alekseevna Mokhova, a researcher at the Vyatka Art Museum, it was established exactly what the miraculous Vyatka icon looked like, after which a new exact list of the Savior Not Made by Hands was written and at the end of August sent to Kirov (Vyatka) for installation in the Spassky Cathedral.

Kharkiv Savior Not Made by Hands

Main article: Spas the Renewed

Historical facts

A copy of the ancient wonder-working Vologda Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands was carried by the All-Russian Emperor Alexander III during the train crash at the Borki station. Almost immediately after the miraculous salvation, by decree of the Ruling Synod, a special prayer service was compiled and published in honor of the miraculous image of the Savior Not Made by Hands.

see also

Notes (edit)

Links

• Hegumen Innokenty (Erokhin). The image of the Savior not made by hands as the basis of icon painting and icon veneration on the website of the Vladivostok diocese
• Sharon Gerstel. Miraculous Mandylion. The Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands in Byzantine Iconographic Programs
• Irina Shalina. Icon "Christ in the grave" and the image not made by hands on the Shroud of Constantinople
• Military relics: Banners with the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands

The oldest Russian icons
Greek (Korsun)	Vladimirskaya Mother of God Smolensk Mother of God 1 Savior Golden Robe Peter and Paul Saint George

According to the Tradition set forth in the Chetya Minea, Abgar V Uchama, sick with leprosy, sent his archivist Hannan (Ananias) to Christ with a letter in which he asked Christ to come to Edessa and heal him. Hannan was an artist, and Abgar instructed him, if the Savior could not come, paint His image and bring it to him.

Hannan found Christ surrounded by a dense crowd; he stood on a stone from which he could see better, and tried to portray the Savior. Seeing that Hannan wanted to make His portrait, Christ demanded water, washed, wiped His face with a cloth, and His image was imprinted on this plate. The Savior handed this payment to Hannan with the command to carry it with a letter to the one who sent it. In this letter, Christ refused to go to Edessa himself, saying that he must fulfill what He was sent to do. After completing His work, he promised to send one of His disciples to Abgar.

Having received the portrait, Avgar was healed of his main ailment, but his face was still damaged.

After Pentecost, the holy Apostle Thaddeus went to Edessa. Preaching the Good News, he baptized the king and most of the population. Coming out of the baptismal font, Abgar discovered that he was completely healed, and expressed gratitude to the Lord. By order of Avgar, the holy ubrus (plate) was glued to a board of rotting wood, decorated and placed over the gates of the city instead of the idol that had previously been there. And everyone had to bow to the "miraculous" image of Christ, as the new heavenly patron of the city.

However, the grandson of Avgar, ascending to the throne, planned to return the people to the worship of idols and for this to destroy the Image Not Made by Hands. The Bishop of Edessa, warned in a vision of this plan, commanded to brick up the niche where the Image was located, placing a lighted lamp in front of it.

Over time, this place was forgotten.

In 544, during the siege of Edessa by the troops of the Persian king Chozroes, the Edessa bishop Eulalius was given a revelation about the whereabouts of the Not-Made-with-Hands Icon. Having disassembled the brickwork in the indicated place, the residents saw not only a perfectly preserved image and an icon lamp that had not died out for so many years, but also the imprint of the Holy Face on ceramics - a clay board that covered the holy ubrus.

After completing the procession with the Image Not Made by Hands on the walls of the city, the Persian army retreated.

A linen cloth with the image of Christ was kept in Edessa for a long time as the most important treasure of the city. During the period of iconoclasm, John of Damascus referred to the Not-Made-by-Hands, and in 787 the Seventh Ecumenical Council, citing it as the most important evidence in favor of the veneration of icons. In 944, the Byzantine emperors Constantine Porphyrogenitus and Roman I bought the Image Not Made by Hands from Edessa. Crowds of people surrounded and brought up the rear during the transfer of the Image Not Made by Hands from the city to the bank of the Euphrates, where the galleys were waiting for the procession to cross the river. Christians began to murmur, refusing to give up the holy Image, unless there is a sign from God. And a sign was given to them. Suddenly the galley, into which the Image Not Made by Hands had already been carried, swam without any action and landed on the opposite shore.

The subdued Edessa residents returned to the city, and the procession with the Image moved on by dry road. Miracles of healing were continuously performed throughout the journey to Constantinople. The monks and saints accompanying the Not-Made-by-Hands Icon, with a magnificent ceremony, traveled by sea throughout the capital and installed the holy Icon in the Temple of Pharos. In honor of this event, on August 16, the church holiday was established. Transfer from Edessa to Constantinople of the Image Not Made by Hands (Ubrus) of the Lord Jesus Christ.

For exactly 260 years the Image of Not Made by Hands was preserved in Constantinople (Constantinople). In 1204, the crusaders turned their weapons against the Greeks and took possession of Constantinople. Together with a multitude of gold, jewelry and sacred objects, they seized and transported to the ship and the Image Not Made by Hands. But, according to the inscrutable fate of the Lord, the Image not Made by Hands did not remain in their hands. As they sailed on the Sea of ​​Marmara, a terrible storm suddenly arose, and the ship quickly went to the bottom. The greatest Christian shrine has disappeared. This ends the story of the true Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands.

There is a legend that the Image Not Made by Hands was transferred around 1362 to Genoa, where it is kept in a monastery in honor of the Apostle Bartholomew. In the Orthodox icon-painting tradition, there are two main types of images of St. Face: "Savior on the Ubrus", or "Ubrus" and "Savior on the Chrepie", or "Chrepie".

On icons of the Savior on Ubrus type, the image of the Savior's face is placed against the background of a plate, the fabric of which is gathered in folds, and its upper ends are tied in knots. Around the head is a nimbus, a symbol of holiness. The color of the halo is usually golden. Unlike the nimbus of saints, the nimbus of the Savior has an inscribed cross. This element is found only in the iconography of Jesus Christ. In Byzantine images, he was adorned with precious stones. Later, a cross in a halo was depicted as consisting of nine lines according to the number of nine angelic ranks and three Greek letters were inscribed (I am who I am), and on the sides of the halo, the abbreviated name of the Savior, IC and XC, was placed against the background. Such icons in Byzantium were called "Holy Mandylion" (Άγιον Μανδύλιον from Greek μανδύας - "ubrus, cloak").

On icons such as "Savior on a Chrepie", or "Chrepie", according to legend, the image of the Savior's face after the miraculous acquisition of the ubrus was also imprinted on the ceramic tile, which covered the Not-Made-by-Hands Image. Such icons in Byzantium were called "Holy Ceramidion". There is no board image on them, the background is even, and in some cases it imitates the texture of tiles or masonry.

The most ancient images were performed on a blank background, without any hint of matter or tiles. The earliest surviving icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands - a two-sided Novgorod image of the 12th century - is in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Ubrus with folds began to spread on Russian icons from the 14th century.

Images of the Savior with a wedge-shaped beard (converging to one or two narrow ends) are also known in Byzantine sources, however, only on Russian soil did they take shape in a separate iconographic type and received the name "Spas Wet Brada".

In the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God in the Kremlin, there is one of the revered and rare icons - "Savior the Bright Eye". It was written in 1344 for the old Assumption Cathedral. It depicts the stern face of Christ piercingly and sternly looking at the enemies of Orthodoxy - Russia during this period was under the yoke of the Tatar-Mongols.

"Savior Not Made by Hands" is an icon especially revered by Orthodox Christians in Russia. She has always been present on Russian military flags since the time of the Mamayev massacre.

A.G. Namerovsky. Sergiy of Radonezh blesses Dmitry Donskoy for a feat of arms

Through many of His icons, the Lord manifested Himself, performing wondrous miracles. So, for example, in the village of Spasskoye, near the city of Tomsk, in 1666 a Tomsk painter, to whom the villagers ordered an icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker for their chapel, started to work according to all the rules. He called the inhabitants to fasting and prayer, and on the prepared board made a cut in the face of the saint of God, so that he could work with paints the next day. But the next day, instead of St. Nicholas, I saw on the blackboard the outlines of the Image of Christ the Savior Not Made by Hands! Twice he restored the features of Nicholas the Pleasant, and twice miraculously restored the face of the Savior on the board. The same thing happened a third time. This is how the icon of the Image Not Made by Hands was written on the board. The rumor about the accomplished sign went far beyond Spassky, and pilgrims began to flock here from everywhere. Quite a long time passed, because of dampness and dust, the constantly open icon decayed and required restoration. Then on March 13, 1788, the icon painter Daniil Petrov, with the blessing of Abbot Pallady, the abbot of the monastery in Tomsk, began to remove the old face of the Savior from the icon with a knife in order to paint a new one. He took off a handful of paints from the board, but the holy face of the Savior remained unchanged. Fear attacked everyone who saw this miracle, and since then no one dared to renew the image. In 1930, like most churches, this temple was closed and the icon disappeared.

The not-made image of Christ the Savior, put up by someone unknown and unknown when, in the city of Vyatka on the porch (porch in front of the church) of the Ascension Cathedral, became famous for the countless healings that took place before him, mainly from eye diseases. A distinctive feature of the Vyatka Savior Not Made by Hands is the image of angels standing on the sides, whose figures are not fully spelled out. Until 1917, a list of the miraculous Vyatka Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands hung from the inside over the Spassky Gate of the Moscow Kremlin. The icon itself was brought from Khlynov (Vyatka) and left in the Moscow Novospassky monastery in 1647. The exact list was sent to Khlynov, and the second was installed over the gates of the Frolov tower. In honor of the image of the Savior and the fresco of the Savior of Smolensk from the outside, the gates through which the icon was delivered and the tower itself were named Spassky.

Another miraculous image of the Savior Not Made by Hands is located in the Transfiguration Cathedral in St. Petersburg. The icon was painted for Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich by the famous icon painter Simon Ushakov. It was passed on by the tsarina to her son, Peter I. He always took the icon with him on military campaigns, and he was with it at the foundation of St. Petersburg. This icon has saved the life of the tsar more than once. The list of this miraculous icon was carried with him by Emperor Alexander III. During the crash of the tsarist train on the Kursk-Kharkov-Azov railway on October 17, 1888, he got out of the destroyed carriage along with the whole family unharmed. The icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands was preserved intact, even the glass in the icon case remained intact.

In the collection of the State Museum of Art of Georgia there is an encaustic icon of the 7th century, called "Anchiskhat Savior", representing Christ in the chest. The Georgian folk tradition identifies this icon with the Image of the Savior not made by hands from Edessa.

In the West, the legend about the Savior Not Made by Hands has spread as the legend about the Fee of St. Veronica. According to him, the pious Jewess Veronica, who accompanied Christ on His journey of the cross to Calvary, gave Him a linen handkerchief so that Christ could wipe the blood and sweat from his face. The face of Jesus is imprinted on the kerchief. The relic called "Veronica's plate" is kept in the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome. Presumably, the name of Veronica at the mention of the Image Not Made by Hands arose as a distortion of lat. vera icon (true image). In Western iconography, a distinctive feature of the images of Veronica's Plaque is the crown of thorns on the Savior's head.

According to Christian tradition, the miraculous Image of the Savior Jesus Christ is one of the proofs of the truth of the incarnation in the human image of the second person of the Trinity. The opportunity to capture the image of God, according to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, is associated with the Incarnation, that is, the birth of Jesus Christ, God the Son, or, as believers usually call Him, Savior, Savior. Before His birth, the appearance of icons was unreal - God the Father is invisible and incomprehensible, therefore, inconceivable. Thus, the first icon painter was God himself, His Son - “the image of His hypostasis” (Heb. 1.3). God gained a human face, the Word became flesh for the salvation of man.

Troparion, voice 2

We bow to Thy Most Pure Image, Good One, asking forgiveness of our sins, Christ God: by the will of God, you were pleased with the flesh to climb to the cross, and save, you have already created, from the work of the enemy. The same grateful cry Ti: you have fulfilled all joy, our Savior, who came to save the world.

Kontakion, voice 2

The first Christian icon is the Savior Not Made by Hands, it is the basis of all Orthodox veneration of icons.

History

According to the Tradition set forth in the Chetya Minea, Abgar V Uchama, sick with leprosy, sent his archivist Hannan (Ananias) to Christ with a letter in which he asked Christ to come to Edessa and heal him. Hannan was an artist, and Abgar instructed him, if the Savior could not come, paint His image and bring it to him.

Hannan found Christ surrounded by a dense crowd; he stood on a stone from which he could see better, and tried to portray the Savior. Seeing that Hannan wanted to make His portrait, Christ demanded water, washed, wiped His face with a cloth, and His image was imprinted on this plate. The Savior handed this payment to Hannan with the command to carry it with a letter to the one who sent it. In this letter, Christ refused to go to Edessa himself, saying that he must fulfill what He was sent to do. After completing His work, he promised to send one of His disciples to Abgar.

Having received the portrait, Avgar was healed of his main ailment, but his face was still damaged.

After Pentecost, the holy Apostle Thaddeus went to Edessa. Preaching the Good News, he baptized the king and most of the population. Coming out of the baptismal font, Abgar discovered that he was completely healed, and expressed gratitude to the Lord. By order of Avgar, the holy ubrus (plate) was glued to a board of rotting wood, decorated and placed over the gates of the city instead of the idol that had previously been there. And everyone had to bow to the "miraculous" image of Christ, as the new heavenly patron of the city.

However, the grandson of Avgar, ascending to the throne, planned to return the people to the worship of idols and for this to destroy the Image Not Made by Hands. The Bishop of Edessa, warned in a vision of this plan, commanded to brick up the niche where the Image was located, placing a lighted lamp in front of it.
Over time, this place was forgotten.

In 544, during the siege of Edessa by the troops of the Persian king Chozroes, the Edessa bishop Eulalius was given a revelation about the whereabouts of the Not-Made-with-Hands Icon. Having disassembled the brickwork in the indicated place, the residents saw not only a perfectly preserved image and an icon lamp that had not died out for so many years, but also the imprint of the Holy Face on ceramics - a clay board that covered the holy ubrus.

After completing the procession with the Image Not Made by Hands on the walls of the city, the Persian army retreated.

A linen cloth with the image of Christ was kept in Edessa for a long time as the most important treasure of the city. During the period of iconoclasm, John of Damascus referred to the Not-Made-by-Hands, and in 787 the Seventh Ecumenical Council, citing it as the most important evidence in favor of the veneration of icons. In 944, the Byzantine emperors Constantine Porphyrogenitus and Roman I bought the Image Not Made by Hands from Edessa. Crowds of people surrounded and brought up the rear during the transfer of the Image Not Made by Hands from the city to the bank of the Euphrates, where the galleys were waiting for the procession to cross the river. Christians began to murmur, refusing to give up the holy Image, unless there is a sign from God. And a sign was given to them. Suddenly the galley, into which the Image Not Made by Hands had already been carried, swam without any action and landed on the opposite shore.

The subdued Edessa residents returned to the city, and the procession with the Image moved on by dry road. Miracles of healing were continuously performed throughout the journey to Constantinople. The monks and saints accompanying the Not-Made-by-Hands Icon, with a magnificent ceremony, traveled by sea throughout the capital and installed the holy Icon in the Temple of Pharos. In honor of this event, on August 16, the church holiday was established. Transfer from Edessa to Constantinople of the Image Not Made by Hands (Ubrus) of the Lord Jesus Christ.

For exactly 260 years the Image of Not Made by Hands was preserved in Constantinople (Constantinople). In 1204, the crusaders turned their weapons against the Greeks and took possession of Constantinople. Together with a multitude of gold, jewelry and sacred objects, they seized and transported to the ship and the Image Not Made by Hands. But, according to the inscrutable fate of the Lord, the Image not Made by Hands did not remain in their hands. As they sailed on the Sea of ​​Marmara, a terrible storm suddenly arose, and the ship quickly went to the bottom. The greatest Christian shrine has disappeared. This ends the story of the true Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands.

There is a legend that the Image Not Made by Hands was transferred around 1362 to Genoa, where it is kept in a monastery in honor of the Apostle Bartholomew.

St. Veronica's Fee

In the West, the tradition of the Savior Not Made by Hands has spread as legends about the Fee of St. Veronica ... According to him, the pious Jewess Veronica, who accompanied Christ on His journey of the cross to Calvary, gave Him a linen handkerchief so that Christ could wipe the blood and sweat from his face. The face of Jesus is imprinted on the kerchief.

A relic called "Veronica's board" kept in the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome. Presumably, the name of Veronica at the mention of the Image Not Made by Hands arose as a distortion of lat. vera icon (true image). In Western iconography, a distinctive feature of the images of Veronica's Plaque is the crown of thorns on the Savior's head.

Iconography

In the Orthodox icon-painting tradition, there are two main types of images of St. Lik: "Spas on the cleanup" , or "Ubrus" and "Savior on a ribbon" , or "Ripe" .

On icons of the Savior on Ubrus type, the image of the Savior's face is placed against the background of a plate, the fabric of which is gathered in folds, and its upper ends are tied in knots. Around the head is a nimbus, a symbol of holiness. The color of the halo is usually golden. Unlike the nimbus of saints, the nimbus of the Savior has an inscribed cross. This element is found only in the iconography of Jesus Christ. In Byzantine images, he was adorned with precious stones. Later, a cross in a halo was depicted as consisting of nine lines according to the number of nine angelic ranks and three Greek letters were inscribed (I am who I am), and on the sides of the halo, the abbreviated name of the Savior, IC and XC, was placed against the background. In Byzantium, such icons were called “Holy Mandylion” (Άγιον Μανδύλιον from Greek μανδύας - “ubrus, cloak”).

On icons such as "Savior on a Chrepie", or "Chrepie", according to legend, the image of the Savior's face after the miraculous acquisition of the ubrus was also imprinted on the ceramic tile, which covered the Not-Made-by-Hands Image. Such icons in Byzantium were called "Holy Ceramidion". There is no board image on them, the background is even, and in some cases it imitates the texture of tiles or masonry.

The most ancient images were performed on a blank background, without any hint of matter or tiles.

Ubrus with folds began to spread on Russian icons from the 14th century.
Images of the Savior with a wedge-shaped beard (converging to one or two narrow ends) are also known in Byzantine sources, however, only on Russian soil did they take shape as a separate iconographic type and received the name "Spas Wet Brada" .

Savior Not Made by Hands "Spas Wet Brada"

One of the revered and rare icons is located in the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God in the Kremlin - "Savior the Bright Eye" ... It was written in 1344 for the old Assumption Cathedral. It depicts the stern face of Christ piercingly and sternly looking at the enemies of Orthodoxy - Russia during this period was under the yoke of the Tatar-Mongols.

Miraculous lists of the "Savior Not Made by Hands"

"Savior Not Made by Hands" is an icon especially revered by Orthodox Christians in Russia. She has always been present on Russian military flags since the time of the Mamayev massacre.

A.G. Namerovsky. Sergiy of Radonezh blesses Dmitry Donskoy for a feat of arms

The earliest surviving icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands - a two-sided Novgorod image of the 12th century - is in the Tretyakov Gallery.

Savior Not Made by Hands. Third quarter of the 12th century. Novgorod

Glorification of the Cross (reverse side of the icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands) XII century. Novgorod

Through many of His icons, the Lord manifested Himself, performing wondrous miracles. So, for example, in the village of Spasskoye, near the city of Tomsk, in 1666 a Tomsk painter, to whom the villagers ordered an icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker for their chapel, started to work according to all the rules. He called the inhabitants to fasting and prayer, and on the prepared board made a cut in the face of the saint of God, so that he could work with paints the next day. But the next day, instead of St. Nicholas, I saw on the blackboard the outlines of the Image of Christ the Savior Not Made by Hands! Twice he restored the features of Nicholas the Pleasant, and twice miraculously restored the face of the Savior on the board. The same thing happened a third time. This is how the icon of the Image Not Made by Hands was written on the board. The rumor about the accomplished sign went far beyond Spassky, and pilgrims began to flock here from everywhere. Quite a long time passed, because of dampness and dust, the constantly open icon decayed and required restoration. Then on March 13, 1788, the icon painter Daniil Petrov, with the blessing of Abbot Pallady, the abbot of the monastery in Tomsk, began to remove the old face of the Savior from the icon with a knife in order to paint a new one. He took off a handful of paints from the board, but the holy face of the Savior remained unchanged. Fear attacked everyone who saw this miracle, and since then no one dared to renew the image. In 1930, like most churches, this temple was closed and the icon disappeared.

The not-made image of Christ the Savior, put up by someone unknown and unknown when, in the city of Vyatka on the porch (porch in front of the church) of the Ascension Cathedral, became famous for the countless healings that took place before him, mainly from eye diseases. A distinctive feature of the Vyatka Savior Not Made by Hands is the image of angels standing on the sides, whose figures are not fully spelled out. Until 1917, a list of the miraculous Vyatka Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands hung from the inside over the Spassky Gate of the Moscow Kremlin. The icon itself was brought from Khlynov (Vyatka) and left in the Moscow Novospassky monastery in 1647. The exact list was sent to Khlynov, and the second was installed over the gates of the Frolov tower. In honor of the image of the Savior and the fresco of the Savior of Smolensk from the outside, the gate through which the icon was delivered and the tower itself were named Spassky.

One more miraculous image of the Savior Not Made by Hands located in the Transfiguration Cathedral in St. Petersburg .

Icon "Savior Not Made by Hands" in the Transfiguration Cathedral of St. Petersburg. Was the favorite image of Emperor Peter I.

The icon was painted, presumably, in 1676 for Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich by the famous Moscow icon painter Simon Ushakov. It was passed on by the queen to her son, Peter I. He always took the icon with him on military campaigns. It was in front of this icon that the emperor prayed at the founding of St. Petersburg, as well as on the eve of the fateful Poltava battle for Russia. This icon has saved the life of the tsar more than once. The list of this miraculous icon was carried with him by Emperor Alexander III. During the crash of the tsarist train on the Kursk-Kharkov-Azov railway on October 17, 1888, he got out of the destroyed carriage along with the whole family unharmed. The icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands was preserved intact, even the glass in the icon case remained intact.

The collection of the State Museum of Art of Georgia contains an encaustic icon of the 7th century, called "Anchiskhatsky Savior" representing Christ bust. The Georgian folk tradition identifies this icon with the Image of the Savior not made by hands from Edessa.

"Anchiskhatsky Savior" is one of the most revered Georgian shrines. In ancient times, the icon was located in the Anchi monastery in South-Western Georgia; in 1664 it was moved to the Tbilisi church in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 6th century, which after the transfer of the icon received the name Anchiskhati (now it is kept in the State Museum of Art of Georgia).

The miraculous icon of the "All-Merciful Savior" in Tutaev

The miraculous icon of the "All-Merciful Savior" is in the Tutaevsky Resurrection Cathedral. The ancient image was painted in the middle of the 15th century by the famous icon painter Dionysius Glushitsky. The icon is huge - about 3 meters.

Initially, the icon was located in the dome (was the "sky") of a wooden church in honor of the holy princes Boris and Gleb, which explains its large size (three meters in height). When the stone church was built, the icon of the Savior was transferred to the summer Resurrection Church.

In 1749, by order of St. Arseny (Matseevich), the icon was taken to Rostov the Great. The icon stayed in the Bishops' House for 44 years, only in 1793 the people of Borisoglebsk were allowed to return it to the cathedral. With great joy they carried the shrine from Rostov in their arms and in front of the settlement stopped at the Kovat River to wash the road dust. Where the icon was placed, a spring of pure spring water gushed out, which exists to this day and is revered as a saint and healing.

From that time on, miracles of healing from physical and spiritual illnesses began to be performed at the holy image. At the expense of grateful parishioners and pilgrims in 1850, the icon was adorned with a silver-gilded crown and riza, seized by the Bolsheviks in 1923. The crown that is on the icon at the present time is its copy.

There is a long tradition of kneeling under the miraculous icon of the Savior with prayer. For this, a special window is arranged in the icon case under the icon.

Every year, on July 2, on the cathedral feast, the miraculous image is taken out of the church on a special stretcher and a procession with the icon of the Savior is performed along the city streets with singing and prayers.

And then, at will, believers climb into the hole under the icon - a healing hole, and on their knees or squatting under the "All-Merciful Savior" with a prayer for healing.

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According to Christian tradition, the miraculous Image of the Savior Jesus Christ is one of the proofs of the truth of the incarnation in the human image of the second person of the Trinity. The opportunity to capture the image of God, according to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, is associated with the Incarnation, that is, the birth of Jesus Christ, God the Son, or, as believers usually call Him, Savior, Savior. Before His birth, the appearance of icons was unreal - God the Father is invisible and incomprehensible, therefore, inconceivable. Thus, the first icon painter was God himself, His Son - "the image of His hypostasis"(Heb. 1.3). God gained a human face, the Word became flesh for the salvation of man.

Prepared by Sergey SHULYAK

for the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity on Vorobyovy Hills

Documentary film "SPAS NONUKOTVORNYY" (2007)

The image left to us by the Savior himself. The very first detailed description of the appearance of Jesus Christ during his lifetime was left to us by the proconsul of Palestine, Publius Lentula. In Rome, in one of the libraries, an undeniably truthful manuscript of great historical value was found. This is the letter that Publius Lentulus, who ruled Judea before Pontius Pilate, wrote to the ruler of Rome.

Troparion, voice 2
We bow to Thy Most Pure Image, Good One, asking forgiveness of our sins, Christ God: by the will of God, you were pleased with the flesh to climb to the cross, and save, you have already created, from the work of the enemy. The same grateful cry Ti: you have fulfilled all joy, our Savior, who came to save the world.

Kontakion, voice 2
Your ineffable and Divine gaze to a man, the Indescribable Word of the Father, and the unwritten and divine image is victorious leading your false incarnation, we honor that kissingly.

Prayer to the Lord
O Lord, Generous and Merciful, Long-Suffering and Many-Merciful, instill our prayer and behold the voice of our prayer, create with us a sign for good, guide us on Thy path, hedgehog walks in Thy truth, rejoice our hearts, and fear Thy Holy Name. Zane Veliky Thou art and work miracles, Thou art one God, and not like Thee in Bozeh, Lord, strong in mercy and goodness in strength, in the hedgehog to help and comfort and save everyone who trusts in Thy holy Name. A min.

Ina prayer to the Lord
Oh, All-good Lord Jesus Christ, our God, You are older than the human nature of Your face, you washed it off and cleaned it with holy water, miraculously depict yourself and the Edessa prince Abgar to heal him from an illness, and you were pleased to send. Behold, we too, your sinful servants, are possessed by our mental and physical ailments, Thy face, O Lord, we seek, and with David in the humility of our souls we call: do not turn away Thy face, O Lord, from us and do not deviate with anger from Thy servants, our helper wake up, do not reject us and do not leave us. Oh, All-Merciful Lord, our Savior, depict Yourself in our souls, so that we will dwell in holiness and righteousness, we will be Your sons and heirs of Your Kingdom, and so to You, our Gracious God, together with Your Originless Father and the Holy Spirit, we will not cease to praise in eyelids of centuries. A min.

NON-CREATIVE SPAS The church tradition tells the following about the appearance of the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands: at the time of the Savior, King Abgar ruled in the Syrian city of Edessa. He contracted a terrible incurable disease - leprosy. The king hoped for the help of the Lord. He wanted to pray before his image. For this, Abgar sent his artist Ananias to Jerusalem with a letter to Christ. Then the all-seeing Lord Himself called Ananias, ordered to bring a jug of water and boards. After washing, the Savior wiped off this cloth, and the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands was imprinted on it. Adhering to the shrine, Abgar immediately received complete healing. He installed the Holy Icon in a niche near the city gates, but soon he hid the image from the wicked. When, in 545, the Persians besieged Edessa, the Most Holy Theotokos appeared in a dream to the then bishop of the city and ordered to open the Image Not Made by Hands. Bypassing the walls of the city with Him, its inhabitants averted their enemies. In 944 the Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus (912-959) solemnly transferred [...]

Icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands - description
Savior Not Made by Hands The Savior Not Made by Hands has always been one of the most beloved images in Russia. It was he who was usually written on the banners of the Russian troops. There are two types of images of the Not-Made-by-Hands Image: Savior on Ubrus and Savior on Ropes. On icons of the "Savior on the Ubrus" type, the face of Christ is depicted on a board (towel), the upper ends of which are tied in knots. There is a border along the bottom edge. The face of Jesus Christ is the face of a middle-aged man with thin and soulful features, with a beard divided in two, with long, curly hair at the ends and with a parted part. The appearance of the icon "Savior on a Chrepia" is explained by the following legend. As already mentioned, the king of Edessa, Avgar, converted to Christianity. The image not made by hands was glued to a "rotting board" and placed over the city gates. Later, one of the kings of Edessa returned to paganism, and the image was immured in a niche of the city wall, and four centuries later this place was completely forgotten. In 545, during the siege of the city by the Persians, the bishop of Edesa was given the [...]

Savior Not Made by Hands - description of the icon
The Not-Made Image of Jesus Christ, Savior on the Ubrus, Mandylion is one of the main types of the image of Christ, representing His face on the ubrus (board) or chrepia (tile). Christ is depicted at the age of the Last Supper. Tradition relates the historical Edessa prototype of this type of icons to the legendary board, on which the face of Christ miraculously manifested itself when He wiped his face with it. The image is usually in the top. One of the options - Chrepie or Keramida - is an image of similar iconography, but against a brickwork background. In western iconography, the type is known<Плат Вероники>, where Christ is depicted on a board, but in a crown of thorns. In Russia, a special type of the Image Not Made by Hands has developed -<Спас Мокрая брада>- an image in which the beard of Christ converges into one thin tip.