Magia ornamentu / Galeria / Stone icon

Stone icon
Chronology:
Early Middle Ages, 13th c. AD
Location:
Czermno, Lubelskie, Poland; stronghold
Museum in Zamość

This stone icon depicts Christ in a nimbus, holding the Gospel with his left hand, the other giving a blessing. The Savior’s head is flanked by the letters IC XC. This discreet item is a pendant in the shape of a flat cuboid. Its edge is thicker and forms a massive frame. There are visible carved lines on the sides of the icon. It might be a remnant of a metal shell that was once attached here and allowed the item to be worn on the neck (the stone cuboid misses a hole that might have served the same purpose). The territory of Poland abounds in similar artefacts, yet they are more common in the area of the former Byzantium. The general features of this item found in Czermno, especially certain flaws in workmanship, rank it among provincial art (the West Ruthenian group) from the 13th century.