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A Byzantine Cloisonné Triptych in the State Hermitage Museum: from the Monastery of Saydnaya to St Petersburg

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A Byzantine Cloisonné Triptych in the State Hermitage Museum: from the Monastery of Saydnaya to St Petersburg ECA 6 (2009), p. 87-118; doi: 10.2143 / ECA.6.0.2052730 A Byzantine Cloisonné Triptych in the State Hermitage Museum: From the Monastery of Saydnaya to St Petersburg Yuri PYATNITSKY The State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg has could have been miniature gold insets with cloisonné in its collection a unique object of Byzantine art, enamel. the so-called Saydnaya Triptych (inv. no. w-1192). The back of the middle part is made of a sliding The triptych received its name after the Monastery lid in the centre and a frame decorated with a dou- of Saydnaya near Damascus, Syria, where it was ble row of square mounts, four larger rectangles, kept for many years. In this article, the story behind and four smaller square mounts between them the triptych’s journey into the collection of the (Pls 6, 7). Some of the faceted dark blue and cherry Hermitage is reconstructed. red glass insets are preserved in the double row of mounts. The larger mounts were designed for the DESCRIPTION OF THE SAYDNAYA TRIPTYCH golden plaques with the decorated cloisonné enam- els. In the middle part of the sliding lid there is The object is a silver triptych reliquary with a hang- now a silver chased plaque with the bust image of ing loop at the top. When closed the wings form the the Virgin with Child (Pls 8, 9). I suggest, however, pattern of the four-armed cross in the centre (Pl. 1). that in its place there should have been a gold Initially the cross was decorated with enamel insets enamel plaque with the Crucifixion. or precious stones, leaving the mounts empty. In the background, embedded at the sides of the cross, THE MONASTERY OF SAYDNAYA AND ITS CONTACTS are four silver plaques with small chased four-point WITH RUSSIA crosses inside multi-petal medallions. With the wings opened, one can see the Deisis scene (Pl. 2). According to tradition, the Greek Orthodox Mon- The central plaque depicts Christ enthroned, and astery of Our Lady of the Nativity in Saydnaya, the side wings have the fully depicted images some 30 km north of Damascus, was founded in the of the Virgin (left wing) and St John the Forerun- sixth century during the reign of the Emperor Justin- ner (right wing; Pls 3-5). The images of Christ ian. Legend has it that during a hunting trip Justin- enthroned and St John the Forerunner, both made ian followed a gazelle to find water. The gazelle then in cloisonné enamel on gold plaques, are set into brought him to the spring where nature was full of the silver frame of the triptych. The left wing must life, and the trees and flowers were blossoming. Sud- have had a similar cloisonné image of the fully rep- denly, an icon of the Virgin Mary appeared instead resented supplicating Virgin but it has been of the gazelle and a voice from heaven proclaimed replaced by a silver chased plaque with the same that the Virgin wished a church to be built by the image. All three decorated plaques (chased and emperor at this spot. Later on she appeared to the enamelled) are set in frames with square mounts emperor in a dream and showed him the plan of the where once faceted cherry red and green glass paste church. In this way, the legend says, the Saydnaya had been. Some of these glass insets have remained Monastery was built; it would be a main pilgrimage intact, though most of them are missing. The cen- centre in Syria and in the Near East in general, and tral part is decorated at the top and bottom with still is one of the most important cultural and reli- rows consisting of three rectangles and four square gious centres of Greek Orthodoxy1. mounts; all insets have disappeared. The rectangle mounts contain golden plaques of decorated clois- 1 For the Monastery of Saydnaya and the cult of its icon see: onné enamels. The square mounts probably held Bacci 2006; Baraz 1995; Hamilton 2000; Immerzeel 2007; colour glass paste or precious stones, though there idem 2009, 43-49; Kedar 2001; Peeters 1906; Zayat 1932. 87 992787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd2787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd 8877 226/08/106/08/10 009:569:56 Pl. 1. Saydnaya Triptych closed (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) Pl. 2. Saydnaya Triptych opened (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) 88 992787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd2787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd 8888 226/08/106/08/10 009:569:56 Pl. 3. Central panel: cloisonné image of Christ Enthroned (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) Pl. 4. Left panel: silver plate with Virgin from the Deisis (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) Pl. 5. Right panel: cloisonné image of St John the Baptist (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) 89 992787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd2787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd 8899 226/08/106/08/10 009:569:56 Pl. 6. Saydnaya Triptych, reverse closed (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) Pl. 7. Saydnaya Triptych, reverse with opened panels: the Holy Cross (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) 90 992787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd2787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd 9900 226/08/106/08/10 009:569:56 Pl. 8. Saydnaya Triptych, reverse: central panel (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) Pl. 9. Detail of Pl. 8 (photograph: State Hermitage Museum) 91 992787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd2787_ECA_6_06_Pyatnitsky.indd 9911 226/08/106/08/10 009:569:56 One of the main relics of the monastery is a As a result, in September 1558, Ivan the Terrible miracle-working icon with the image of the Virgin sent generous financial contributions to the Ori- and Child. According to the legend, this icon was ental Greek Orthodox Church to the Patriarch of painted by St Luke the Apostle. The icon is hidden Antioch, Joachim IV (Ibn Juma, 1543/44-1576) from the believers in a special silver case which is through the merchant Vasiliy Pozdniakov, amongst kept in a separate niche behind the altar; no one others. During his mission, Pozdniakov visited can see it or touch it2. the four Greek Orthodox patriarchs (of Constan- The relationship between Russia and this distant tinople, Jerusalem, Antioch, and Alexandria). He Syrian monastery has a long history, in spite of the came to Damascus in the spring (as suggested by fact that the Patriarchate of Antioch made official Khrisanf Loparev)5 or the summer (as suggested by contacts with Moscow as late as in the mid-sixteenth K.A. Panchenko)6 of 1560 and delivered the alms century, as the last of the patriarchates of Greek to the Patriarch of Antioch. In return, Joachim IV Orthodoxy3. In January 1558 monks of St Cather- sent Pozdniakov back with a letter that confirmed ine’s Monastery at Mount Sinai came to Moscow the receipt of the alms, and sent some information with official letters from Joachim, the Patriarch of about the Patriarchate of Antioch. This document Alexandria, and Macarius, the Archbishop of Sinai, includes several interesting facts about the Monas- and they told the Moscow administration about the tery of Saydnaya: difficult situation of the Patriarchate of Antioch4. O Holy Tsar, there is a monastery in our land, beyond the city of Damascus, that is devoted to Our Lady. Over forty monks live there and they do 2 Peeters 1906, 137-155; Tsitsiloni/Mols 1999, 49-52. 3 Panchenko 2004, 203–221. not have any fortune. People say that St Paul the 4 Murav’ev 1858, 88-94. Apostle visited the place. The miracle-working icon 5 Loparev in Chozdenie kupca Vasiliya Pozdnyakova 1887, of the Virgin Mary painted by St Luke the Evan- V-VI. gelist is still here and the chrism runs from both 6 Panchenko 2004, 204-205. 7 ‘Svqteîjiî carà, zdesà v najih stranah obretaetca hands of the Virgin Mary, and this icon cures eve- monastxrà za gradom Damasku (…). Prewistxe Pre- ryone who comes to it with faith. In order to be blagoslovennxe Bogorodicx. I obretaùtsq v nem remembered in this monastery, if you wish so, send wetxredesqt bratov i svxje. Prowee çe lijeni sutà 7 vsqkogo blaga. Mesta mo prebxval svqtxî Pavel. them alms, and may God bless you with it . Tamo i nxne està [ikona] svqtxe Bogorodicx, ù ç napisal Luka Evangelist, ot neq ç sutà iz dvoù In March 1582, Trifon Korobeinikov and Yury rucx txi miro tewet, i mnoçivami bxvaet iscele- Grekov were sent from Moscow to the Orthodox nie prihodqÏim k neî s veroù. I dlq radi vajeî pamqti pojli im milostxnù, qko ç blagovolijà, i Orient, travelling through Constantinople, Antioch, nastavit tq Bog.’ (after Panchenko 2004, 205). A passage Alexandria, and the Holy City of Jerusalem, to from the text of this letter was published for the first time Mount Sinai and to Egypt with rich alms from by A.N. Murav’ev in his narration: ‘St Paul the Apostle Ivan the Terrible. Describing the road from Con- stayed there once and there is still the icon of the Virgin stantinople to Jerusalem, Korobeinikov mentions Mary painted by Luke the Evangelist. Chrism runs out from both her hands and those with faith were often the Monastery of Saydnaya: healed’ (‘Tam prebxval nekogda svqtoî Apostol Pavel, tam i donxne està obraz Presvqtxq Bogoro- The Greek Monastery of Our Lady is located dicx kotorxî napisal evangelist Luka Iz obeih , . 10 versts 8 before Damascus; and there is the mir- ruk eq tewet miro i mnogie bxvaùt isceleniq pri- hodqÏim s veroù’; Murav’ev 1858, 103). The original acle-working icon of the Virgin that cured the letter by Joachim IV is kept in RGADA, found 52, opis’ hand of John of Damascus which the iconoclast 1, kniga 1, listi 169-173 ob. King Leo III had ordered to be cleft in Damascus. 8 Versta: 1.0668 kilometers in the second half of the nine- Even today the chrism runs from this icon that has teenth – beginning of the twentieth century in Russia.
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