End of 18th Century, Russia. Egg tempera on chalk ground, painted on wooden panel. Exceptionally large, measuring 69 cms x 58 cms, this icon attests to the great skill of the monk artist who made it in great detail for the adoration of The Blessed Virgin Mary by the believers. Following the traditional canon of Russian Sacred Art from the 18th Century. This fine and beautiful depiction of The Dormition of Mary shows the traits of the 18th Century Russian school of icon creation, like the colors used (such as the lead white), the specific way the tempera forms craquelure horizontally or the type of faces depicted in great detail but heavenly, without western perspective, following the canon of Orthodox Sacred Art using the "reverse perspective". Iconography: The icon revolves around none other than Christ Himself, who has come down from His heavenly throne to receive His mother in His arms. We see St Mary lying on her deathbed, surrounded by angels and saints. Above her body stands her Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. In his hands is a small child covered in white clothes which represents the soul of St Mary. She carried her Son into this life, and her Son in turn carries her into eternal life. This is the privilege that awaits all Christians who carry Christ in their lives. Several bishops in episcopal attire are shown here and are traditionally said to be St James, the first bishop of Jerusalem, St Timothy, Heirotheus, and Dionysius the Areopagite (who provided the first written account of the Dormition in the second century). At the feet of St Mary’s bed, we see St Paul who bows low in honor of her. St Peter is shown censing the body of the Theotokos. To convey that he was the leader of the Apostles and the fledgling church. This depiction of St Paul and St Peter on the right and left shows the Christian understanding of how these two apostles were the pillars of the Church. John the Evangelist, who took care of the Holy Virgin after the death and ascension of the Lord Jesus, is often shown as leaning on the body of the Theotokos. The Dormition icons always show some apostles with angels in the clouds. This is depicted to remind us of how the Apostles were miraculously brought to Jerusalem by the Holy Spirit from the ends of the earth just before St Mary’s death. This is a unique icon rich in history and iconography, in extraordinary condition for such an old age. A rare collector's item. Measurements 70 x 58 cm. Condition: Outstanding condition, no restorations seen. Painting shows signs of craquelure as expected. A couple of small chips are present in unimportant areas of the frame. Signs of paint and varnish aging, a cleaning process was apparently started but not finished, as seen in the top bar of the icon (varnish is clean there). Professionally packed and shipped with upmost care. This increases the shipping cost slightly, but it reassures that it arrives without damage.