A Hodegetria , ;
russian: Одиги́трия, Odigítria ;
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
** Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
**Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...
: Hodighitria, or Virgin Hodegetria, is an
iconographic depiction of the
Theotokos (
Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
) holding the
Child Jesus at her side while pointing to him as the source of salvation for humankind. The Virgin's head usually inclines towards the child, who raises his hand in a blessing gesture. In the
Western Church this type of icon is sometimes called Our Lady of the Way.
The most venerated
icon
An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The mos ...
of the Hodegetria type, regarded as the original, was displayed in the
Monastery of the Panaghia Hodegetria in
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
, which was built specially to contain it. Unlike most later copies it showed the Theotokos standing full-length. It was said to have been brought back from the
Holy Land by
Eudocia, the wife of emperor
Theodosius II (408–450), and to have been painted by
Saint Luke the apostle himself. The icon was double-sided, with a
crucifixion
Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagi ...
on the other side, and was "perhaps the most prominent cult object in Byzantium".
The original icon has probably now been lost, although various traditions claim that it was carried to Russia or Italy. There are a great number of copies of the image, including many of the most venerated of Russian icons, which have themselves acquired their own status and tradition of copying.
Constantinople
There are a number of images showing the icon in its shrine and in the course of being displayed publicly, which happened every Tuesday, and was one of the great sights of Constantinople for visitors. After the
Fourth Crusade, from 1204 to 1261, it was moved to the
Monastery of the Pantocrator
Pantokratoros Monastery or the Monastery of the Pantocrator ( el, Μονή Παντοκράτορος, translit=Moni Pantokratoros), also called the Monastery of the Ascension of the Lord ( el, Αναλήψεως του Κυρίου, Analipseos ...
, which had become the
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...
of the
Venetian
Venetian often means from or related to:
* Venice, a city in Italy
* Veneto, a region of Italy
* Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area
Venetian and the like may also refer to:
* Venetian language, a Romance language s ...
see during the period of
Frankish rule, and since none of the illustrations of the shrine at the Hodegetria Monastery predate this interlude, the shrine may have been created after its return.
There are a number of accounts of the weekly display, the two most detailed by Spaniards:
Another account says the bearers staggered around the crowd, the icon seeming to lurch towards onlookers, who were then considered blessed by the Virgin. Clergy touched pieces of cotton-wool to the icon and handed them out to the crowd. A wall-painting in a church near Arta in Greece shows a great crowd watching such a display, whilst a street-market for unconcerned locals continues in the foreground.
The
Hamilton Psalter The Hamilton Psalter (Breviario Greco, with illuminations, 4to MS on velum am. 119 is an illustrated manuscript that consists of Psalms 1-150 and twelve canonical Odes. It is most notable among Byzantine manuscripts due to being one of the few surv ...
picture of the shrine in the monastery appears to show the icon behind a golden screen of large mesh, mounted on brackets rising from a four-sided pyramidal base, like many large medieval
lecterns. The heads of the red-robed attendants are level with the bottom frame of the icon.
The icon disappeared during the
Fall of Constantinople in 1453 when it was deposited at the
Chora Church. It may have been cut into four pieces.
Spread of the image
In the 10th century, after the period of
iconoclasm
Iconoclasm (from Greek: grc, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, εἰκών + κλάω, lit=image-breaking. ''Iconoclasm'' may also be consid ...
in
Byzantine art
Byzantine art comprises the body of Christian Greek artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire, as well as the nations and states that inherited culturally from the empire. Though the empire itself emerged from the decline of Rome and lasted u ...
, this image became more widely used, possibly developing from an earlier type where the Virgin's right hand was on Christ's knee. An example of this earlier type is the
Salus Populi Romani icon in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
. Many versions carry the inscription "Hodegetria" in the background and in the Byzantine context "only these named versions were understood by their medieval audience as conscious copies of the original Hodegetria in the Hodegon monastery", according to Maria Vasilakē.
Full-length versions, both probably made by Greek artists, appear in
mosaic
A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...
in
Torcello Cathedral (12th century) and the
Cappella Palatina,
Palermo (c. 1150), this last with the "Hodegetria" inscription.
From the Hodegetria developed the
Panagia Eleousa (Virgin of Tender Mercy), where Mary still indicates Christ, but he is nuzzling her cheek, which she slightly inclines towards him; famous versions include the
Theotokos of Vladimir and the
Theotokos of St. Theodore
The Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God (russian: Феодоровская икона Божией Матери), also known as Our Lady of Saint Theodore and the Black Virgin Mary of Russia, is the patron icon of the Romanov family. It is on ...
. Usually Christ is on the left in these images.
Hodegetria of Smolensk
Some Russians, however, believe that after the fall of Constantinople,
St. Luke
Luke the Evangelist (Latin: '' Lucas''; grc, Λουκᾶς, '' Loukâs''; he, לוקאס, ''Lūqās''; arc, /ܠܘܩܐ לוקא, ''Lūqā’; Ge'ez: ሉቃስ'') is one of the Four Evangelists—the four traditionally ascribed authors of t ...
's icon surfaced in Russia, where it was placed in the
Assumption Cathedral in
Smolensk,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
. On several occasions, it was brought with great ceremony to
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, where the
Novodevichy Convent was built in her honour. Her feast day is August 10.
This icon, dated by art historians to the 11th century, is believed to have been destroyed by fire during the
German occupation of Smolensk in 1941. A number of churches all over Russia are dedicated to the Smolensk Hodegetria, e.g., the
Smolensky Cemetery Church in
St. Petersburg and the
Odigitrievsky Cathedral in
Ulan-Ude. They may refer to the
Theotokos as "Our Lady of Smolensk."
Italian tradition
An Italian tradition relates that the original icon of Mary attributed to Luke, sent by Eudocia to
Pulcheria from Palestine, was a large circular icon only of her head. When the icon arrived in Constantinople, it was fitted in as the head in a very large rectangular icon of Mary holding the Christ child; it is this composite icon that became the one historically known as the Hodegetria. Another tradition states that when the last Latin Emperor of Constantinople,
Baldwin II, fled Constantinople in 1261, he took this original circular portion of the icon with him. It remained in the possession of the
Angevin dynasty, who likewise had it inserted into a larger image of Mary and the Christ child, which is presently enshrined above the high altar of the Benedictine Abbey church of
Montevergine.
Unfortunately, over the centuries this icon has been subjected to repeated repainting, so that it is difficult to determine what the original image of Mary's face would have looked like. However, Guarducci also claims that in 1950 an ancient image of Mary
at the Church of
Santa Francesca Romana was determined to be a very exact, but reverse mirror image of the original circular icon that was made in the 5th century and brought to Rome, where it has remained until the present.
[Margherita Guarducci, ''The Primacy of the Church of Rome''. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1991, 93-101.]
An Italian "original" icon of the Hodegetria in Rome features in the crime novel ''Death and Restoration'' (1996) by
Iain Pears, in the Jonathan Argyll series of art history mysteries.
It gives its name to the church of
Santa Maria Odigitria al Tritone in Rome.
Gallery
Eastern church
File:Meister von Torcello 002.jpg, Full-length mosaic by Greek artists, Torcello, 12th century
File:Tikhvinskaya.jpg, The Theotokos of Tikhvin (c. 1300)
File:Perivlepta ikona.jpg, The Theotokos of Perivleptos (c. 1350)
File:Theotokos of the Passion.jpg, The Theotokos of the Passion (17th century)
File:Christodoulos Kalergis Virgin and Child.png, Christodoulos Kalergis (18th century)
Western church
File:Our Mother of Perpetual Help.jpg, Mother of Perpetual Help
File:Duccio_The-Madonna-and-Child-128.jpg, Duccio
Duccio di Buoninsegna ( , ; – ) was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religious buildings around Italy. Du ...
, 1284
File:Dietisalvi di Speme Madonna.jpg, Dietisalvi di Speme
Dietisalvi di Speme was an Italian painter, who worked in Siena between 1250 and 1291.
In his work he influenced and was influenced by Cimabue.
Life
His name, meaning ''May-God-Save-You (son) of Hope'' seems likely to be of the kind often give ...
File:The-Madonna-and-Child-Enthroned.ок.1285-95г. San Regolo, Montaione.jpg, Guido da Siena
File:Czestochowska.jpg, Black Madonna of Częstochowa
Notes
References
*
*Vasilakē, Maria. ''Images of the Mother of God: Perceptions of the Theotokos in Byzantium'', p. 196, Ashgate publishing Co, Burlington, Vermont,
*
External links
''Byzantium: faith and power (1261-1557)'' an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains many examples of Hodegetria
{{Authority control
Eastern Orthodox icons of the Virgin Mary
Virgin Mary in art
Black Madonna of Częstochowa
5th-century Christianity
Pulcheria