Icon - Byzantine Madonna - Copper

Icon on copper depicting 'Madonna of the Perpetual Help', Byzantine Greek style

This icon represents the Madonna of Perpetual Help according to the Greco-Byzantine tradition, created with the oil on copper technique widespread between the 18th and 19th centuries in the Greco-Orthodox regions. The copper support was particularly valued in Greek iconographic workshops for its durability and for the luminosity it imparted to the colors, allowing the creation of devotional images intended both for Orthodox churches and for the homes of the faithful. The decorative metal bands that frame the icon are typical of the Greek tradition and served both to protect the work and to enrich it aesthetically. These Greco-Byzantine copper icons are highly sought after by collectors of Orthodox sacred art, by scholars of Byzantine iconography, and by enthusiasts of Greek religious art. Their value lies in the rarity of the copper support combined with Byzantine iconography, in the quality of execution of the traditional technique, and in the historically devotional importance of the image. They represent precious testimonies of Greco-Orthodox religious art and are particularly appreciated for their antique charm, their historical authenticity, and the continuity with the millennial Byzantine iconographic tradition.