Lot 0257
Icon of the Mother of God “Skoroposlushnitsa (Gorgoepikoos)”, Mount Athos, circa 1900
Estimate: 7500-9000€
ICON OF THE MOTHER OF GOD “SKOROPOSLUSHNITSA” (Gorgoepikoos)
Greece, Mount Athos, circa 1900.
Wood, gesso, oil, gilding. Dimensions:
26.5 × 22 cm
Inscriptions and stamps: on the reverse, a stamp of the Holy Mountain of Athos (Iera Epistasia, “ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΝ”) and a circular seal; below, an ink inscription in Russian: “This authentic icon was received from the Holy Mount Athos, from the Russian Panteleimon Monastery.”
This icon represents the Mother of God in the Hodegetria type, the Guide or She Who Shows the Way. The Virgin, crowned and half-length, supports the Christ Child on her left arm and gestures toward Him with her right hand, directing the viewer’s devotion to the Incarnate Logos. The Christ Child, seated frontally, holds a rolled scroll. The background is entirely gilded, while the haloes are subtly tooled, lending the surface a restrained ceremonial brilliance. In the field appear the customary inscriptions: the Greek abbreviations for the Mother of God, the Christogram beside the Child, and, at left, the title identifying the image as the Most Holy Mother of God “Skoroposlushnitsa.”
The icon is an Athonite replica of the miracle-working Skoroposlushnitsa image displayed at the Monastery of Dochiariou. The original prototype was a wall painting of the 10th or 11th century, located near the entrance to the monastery refectory. Its special veneration is connected with the well-known Athonite tradition of the cellarer Nilus, who in 1664 received both rebuke and healing through the voice of the Mother of God. From that time onward, the image acquired fame as a wonderworking shrine, especially revered for its swift response to prayer.
Particularly significant are the marks on the reverse, which preserve the devotional biography of the present work. The official Athonite stamps indicate authorization for its departure from the Holy Mountain, while the inscription confirms its association with the Russian Monastery of Saint Panteleimon. Such details place the icon within the wide circulation of Athonite blessing images produced for pilgrims and benefactors, yet this example rises above the merely documentary by virtue of its refined execution and its well-preserved liturgical character.
The history of the Russian veneration of the Skoroposlushnitsa is closely linked with Hieromonk Arsenii (Alexander Minin, 1823-1879), a noted spiritual writer and publisher from the Russian Panteleimon Monastery on Athos. Having come to Russia in 1862 to collect donations for the monastery, he brought to Moscow in 1866 a portion of the relics of the Great Martyr Panteleimon together with an icon of the Mother of God Skoroposlushnitsa. From that moment the cult of this image spread widely in Russia. At first the holy objects were housed in the Epiphany Monastery in Moscow; in 1870 a special Athonite chapel was erected for them at the corner of Nikolskaya Street and Bogoyavlensky Lane. The chapel was closed and demolished in 1929.
Starting price: 6000€
Estimate: 7500-9000€
Hammer Price: €
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