"Praise the Lord from the Heaven with 16 great liturgical feasts"

Late 17th century, Palekh.

Size: 41 х 33 cm. Big home size.
Technique & Material: Wood, bone gesso, egg tempera, on canvas, melted gold, olifa.

Description:  This icon has good original state of preservation, high level painting and cool "school" of icon painting.

The composition of the icon is complex and extremely rich. Icon's middle part has 16 holidays with the Descent into Hell. Above, on the next “tier” we can see the image of the Resurrection, which is extremely rare for Russian iconography of this period. ​This composition is an illustrated pf Psalm 148, which begin "Prayse ye Lord". The Russian name for this iconography is "Khvalite Gospoda s nebes". I. E. The opening verse of Psalm in Russian. This motif forms the subject of a study by G. P. Schiemenz.

This icon has the highest level, precious bright colors including pink, luxurious architecture in the reverse perspective. This factors certainly make the icon a true masterpiece. Icon has light scuffs. Given 300 years of the icon age, the state of preservation is close to ideal. Icon was disclosed from under a layer of darkened drying oil.

Provenance : Icon is from the Kharitonenko collection. Later, around 1935, this icon was bought by one major Swedish collector who had business in the USSR and had preferences to buy the best icons there.

For the last couple of years we often buy things from Sweden, that are interesting for us and it can be not only icons. It can also be silverware, jewelry, sabers, porcelain, furniture and art nuovo lamps and some applied items. This icon was purchased from the woman who was exhibiting Russian things, her name is Laura. She got the collection of icons from her husband Wilhelm, who had suddenly gone. This man received icons from his grandfather. David worked and was a friend of Mr. Olof Aschberg in the 20-30s.

The icons from which his passion for life began, David received unexpectedly from his patron in 1932, as a gift. In 1933, as an elderly person, Aschberg gave most of the collection as a magnificient donation to the National Museum In Stockholm.
David Mergeladze had Georgian roots from his father, knew Russian well enough, was very interested in Orthodox culture, could recite a treatise by heart about the icon veneration of John Damaskin, etc. His father died in 1917, he was a nobleman from a princely family.
It is difficult to say whether this “bribed” Ashberg’s soul, and what reasons were there and whether there were any. It seems to be more important, under what circumstances these icons were gifted.
Once Olaf simply asked his secretary to make a selection of 8 or 10 home-sized icons that he would like to put on an album about his collection and write a short article for each of it. When David finished, the next day his wife called and said that the courier had brought several packages. Courier brought these icons and this icon, in my opinion the most interesting of 9 others. (I have already looked, all the icons of David).
Regarding Olaf Aschberg himself:

This man, a financial tycoon and a clever businessman who had business with the new Soviet Russia and had very great connections and relations with influential officials. He was buying icons in his apartments in Moscow. He had something like "buying up". Impoverished nobles, aristocrats were bringing to him patrimonial shrines that had been in their noble families for hundreds of years. He wrote himself about this in his book.
When the time came to leave Russia, Aschberg received permission to export several hundred icons to Sweden with recommendations from 4 Soviet experts. Only 15 icons that he was not allowed to take away, were presented to Russian museums by him. Museums were recommended to him by experts.
In 1933, 250 icons were donated by Aschberg to the National Museum of Stockholm. But at least a hundred icons went elsewhere.

High Resolution Images: fragments.
Price: upon request

Слава Господу с небес с 16 великими литургическими праздниками. 

Конец 17 века, Палех.

Размер: 41 х 33 cm.

Дерево, костяное гипсо, яичная темпера, холст, растопленное золото, олифа.

High Resolution Images: fragments.
Цена: по запросу