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Description

A Russian Pair of Wedding Icons depicting the Kazanskaya Mother of God and St. Nicholas the Miracleworker
Peter Miliukov, Moscow, 1896
12-1/4 x 10-7/8 inches (31.1 x 27.6 cm) (each)

In Russian Orthodox tradition, marriage icons were among the most cherished possessions of a household, presented to the bride and groom at the time of their wedding and thereafter enshrined in the krasnyi ugol ("beautiful corner") of the home. The pair traditionally unites the holy images of Christ Pantokrator and the Hodegitria Mother of God, yet in domestic Russian practice this combination was sometimes replaced by a personally meaningful icon of the Theotokos paired with Saint Nicholas the Miracleworker—a distinctly Russian expression of the practice.

The substitution of Saint Nicholas for the Savior signifies the shift from the liturgical to the personal, emphasizing the icons' role not as church furnishings but as intimate emblems of family devotion. Together, these two holy figures embody the spiritual guardianship of Russian marriage—faith sanctified within the life of the home.

This finely executed pair, produced in Moscow in 1896 by Peter Miliukov, reflects the high standards of late Imperial icon painting, combining elegant painting beneath chased repousse silver oklady with cloisonné enamel applied ornament.


Estimate: $60,000 - $80,000.

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