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Some Icons with Scenes of the Life and the Dormition of Saint Nicholas (pl. 104-113)

Articles

• Ζίας, Νίκος
• ΖΙΑΣ, Νίκος

The purpose of this paper is to provide some art historical evidencefor the iconographical study of the life of Saint Nicholas.The evidence mainlyderives from icons of the Castoria Collection. Problems such as the relationbetween the various texts and their illustration, specific iconographical typesof the scenes and their origin, as well as their chronological sequence in thenarrative cycles, have not found their solution in this study. Occasionally,however, a more detailed discussion takes place in order to define the natureof a problem more clearly. The material includes in the first place a double -faced icon from Castoria (No. 430, 107x101 cm).A. One side bears a full - length and full-face depiction of the Saint inthe central area (84 χ 32 cm) (pi. 104a) and twelve scenes from his life inthe frame (see diagram on p. 280).The scenes are as follows :1. Totally destroyed. Probably it depicted the Birth of the Saint.2. The Saint appears to Constantine in a dream (pi. 105a).3. The Saint appears to the eparch Ablabios (pi. 105β).4. The three liberated generals bring gifts to the Saint (pi. 106a).5. The Saint saves three youths from decapitations (pi. 106β).6. The three guiltless generals in prison (pi. 107a).7. The very rare scene probably represented the miracle of «άβροχεία»,according to which the Saint's prayers caused a rainfall (pi. 107β).8. The Saint saves a ship from foundering (pi. 108a); in the upper rightcorner a depiction of a town (probably Jerusalem) is included.9. The scene, whih is badly preserved and rather rare, probably depictedan act of charity of the Saint (pi. 108 β).10. This scene is difficult to identify (pi. 109a). The falling daemon, however,and the inclusion of the imposing buildings allow us to suppose thatthe destruction of the temple of Artemis was depicted there.11. The scene is badly damaged. From a well preserved inscription, however,it is identified as the cutting of the oak tree.12. The Dormition of the Saint (pi. 109β).These twelve scenes have not been arranged in chronological order. The painter (or the donor) was not interested in presenting the events of thelife of the Saint but in recording his gratitude to the Saint interest. The following factors lead us to this supposition : the main part of the frame reservedto the biographical cycle of the Saint is taken by the story of the three generals. Moreover, we do know that during the Byzantine period Castoria servedas a place of exiled who have included many officials from Constantinoplesuch as Nicephore Magistros Kasnitzis (the donor of the well-known smallchurch in this town). Hence we consider that the donor of the icon in questionselected the scenes of the Saint's life with a specific puspose in mind : hewanted to ensure for himself the assistance of Saint Nicholas, as was thecase with the three generals. The connection of the story of the generalswith the personal adventure of the exiled in Castoria may probably accountfor the large number of churches dedicated to Saint Nicholas in that town.It is not easy to date the icon under consideration because of a notabledifference in style between the depiction of the central area and the framescenes. Nonetheless, general stylistic factors such as a lack of balance whichcharacterizes the posture of the Saint in the middle and a certain eclecticapproach in regard to the iconography may date the icon to the last years ofthe fourteenth or rather the beginning of the fifteenth century. A numberof iconographical and stylistic affinities with other icons from Castoriaand from Scopie may support the hypothesis of the existence of a localschool under the influence of an important artistic center such as Constantinople or Salonica.B. On the other side of the panel (No. 430) one sees the remnants of thescene of the Dormition of Saint Nicholas (pi. 110β).Furthermore the Dormition of Saint Nicholas is depicted on anotherpanel from Castoria (No. 496, 41 χ65 cm) (pi. 111). The composition issimple and austere. The horizontal axis is balanced by the six vertical axesof the standing figures. On stylistic grounds we assign this depiction tothe first half of the fifteenth century.Depictions of the Dormition of Saint Nicholas are preserved from theByzantine period proper both in frescoes and icons. They follow in generalthe iconography of the Dormition of Saints which is distinguished in twotypes. However variants may be noticed in the iconographie features of oneof the above types, that from which stems the Dormition of Saint Nicholas·These are: a) the burial proper; b) a symbolic rendering of the death of theSaint (Dormition). As for the Castoria panel it bears certain analogies witha fresco at Krapsi (Epirus) which is dated in 1564. Further study willshow whether wer are here dealing with an original composition or a copyafter an older model.

• History and Archaeology
• Arts

• Arts and religion

• http://ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/deltion/article/view/4497
• http://dx.doi.org/10.12681/dchae.796