Title
The Nativity of Jesus ChristDatec.1675-1700
MediumTempera on panel
Dimensions
35.5 x 30.5 cm
Credit LinePurchased, 1968
Object numberNGI.1841
Label TextThe artist who produced this icon may have trained as a miniature painter. Fifteen scenes from the story of Christ’s birth are shown in four registers. The mountain, where Christ is shown to have been born in the Russian tradition, acts as a backdrop. This carefully composed work was intended for the court in Moscow. The silver gilt frame, a rare survival, is nailed in four sections. It is inscribed with the names of the four principal subjects, against a background of leaves and flowers.