Ars Adriatica, No. 5, 2015.
Original scientific paper
The Depiction of Korčula on an Icon in the Byzantine Museum in Athens
Zoraida Demori Staničić
; Croatian Conservation Institute, Split, Croatia
Abstract
The icon of Miracle by the Virgin attributed to the circle of Theodore Poulakis from Byzantine Museum in Athens is known and published. It is divided in two horizontal registers: the upper depicts Virgin Hodegetria with venerating angels under adorned pointed arch, while in the lower one there is a shipwreck in front of the fortified town. Virgin is accompanied by the eloquent epithet „The Hope of Sinners”. The wreck below this celestial scene is realistically presented with passengers of the ship perishing in the rough sea. Two of them clinging to wooden boards swim to nearby land with fortified city which Greek inscription „Kurzula”. This town is, actually, Korčula on the epinomous island in the Croatian part of the Adriatic which was Venetian territory and important port, and not Kurzulari islands at the western entrance to the Corinthian gulf, as had been suggested.
Icon has Greek votive dedication to the „Virgin of the Venetians”, made by obviously saved Ioannis Ardavanis, which is a Greek name from Kefallinia, who was either passenger or owner of the ship. The image of the Virgin may be identified as venerated icon from Hvar Franciscan monastery, parallel to island of Korčula, a well known medieval sanctuary, situated on the way to Holy Land. Hvar icon with the epithet „Hope of the Sinner” was painted in the second half of 16th century and has the same iconography and a similar epithet as the Virgin in the Byzantine Museum.
Keywords
icon of the Virgin and Child; Early Christian and Byzantine Museum in Athens; Korčula; ex-voto painting
Hrčak ID:
149636
URI
Publication date:
18.12.2015.
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