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Icon "New Testament Trinity"

Icon "New Testament Trinity"

Inv. #
Ж-1305
Category
Icons
Dimensions
61.2 × 49.3 cm
Materials
Techniques

Description

At the center of the composition is a full-length image of God the Father, Lord of Sabaoth (right), and God the Son, Jesus Christ (left), seated on a cloud in heaven; above them is God the Holy Spirit in the form of a Dove. Christ is shown in a three-quarter turn to the right, pointing with his left hand to a large wooden cross, which he supports with his right hand. God the Son has long hair and a small beard, and wears a red chiton and a blue himation; around his head is a round halo. God the Father is shown in a three-quarter turn to the left, his right hand slightly raised, holding in his left a long scepter — a symbol of the authority of the Ruler of the Universe — on which he leans against the celestial orb. Sabaoth, a gray-haired elder with a long beard, wears a light-blue chiton and a green himation, with a triangular halo around his head. Golden radiance surrounds the Holy Spirit. At the top left of the icon is the Church Slavonic inscription "The Holy Trinity"; above the image of Christ, "God the Son"; above the Holy Spirit, "God the Holy Spirit"; above Sabaoth, "God the Father." The icon is painted on canvas.

The icon was acquired by the museum from P. P. Zhmailo of Kharkiv in 1990.

Legend: the icon "New Testament Trinity" depicts God the Father as a gray-haired elder, symbolizing His eternity; God the Son as a grown man with a cross, following the Ascension and glorification. The Holy Spirit proceeds from God the Father and rests above Christ in the form of a white Dove, symbolizing the descent of the Holy Spirit. The faithful pray before this icon for the forgiveness of sins, and for the granting of wisdom, strength, and protection from temptation.