Russian Icons

Just a little background info: an icon is a painting (usually) done on a piece of wood that bears the image of a sacred person or sometimes of an event that is religiously significant. 

Russia first began the tradition of icon painting after Vladimir the Great converted to Christianity in the late 10th century.  It then continued throughout the medieval ages, until the rule of Peter the Great, when art became secularized. 

When icons first came around, they were displayed only in churches and religious settings. But by the 15th century, icons could commonly be found in homes. 

One of Russia's most famous icon painters was Theophanes the Greek.  Theophanes the Greek was particularly known for his fresco paintings on the inside of churches.  Once he arrived in Russia from Constantinople, he worked on fresco paintings in churches in Moscow and Novogorod.  However, only the frescoes he painted for the Church of the Transfiguration in Novogorod survive today.