Ref:  6518

A rare and primitive icon from Eastern Europe, the subject matter is the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, the palette of primary colours with pastel shades, the child-like figurative style and the non-perspectival depiction of the buildings all make the work seem much earlier than it is, as if it harked from the period of Giotto not 250 years ago but this is typical of the icons from this area, the artists were professionals and local masters but they worked remotely from the development of painting that was taking place in Western & Central Europe, what they knew and modelled were the genuine medieval frescos and icons in the ancient churches surrounding them in the Bukovina and in Moldova. From private collection in Budapest.

Moldova      18th cent.

H: 30cm (11.8in)
W: 26cm (10.2in)
D: 3.5cm (1.4in)

£550