Description in Icons, Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, 2004, cat. no. 10:
The Fiery Ascent of the Prophet Elijah to Heaven
Late 17th-early 18th century, Bojana, Bulgaria
NMI 302

Wood: Pine (Pinus sp.), egg tempera.
Panel made of three boards with two
superimposed splines and one inlaid
from one side, inner border of icon
decorated with a double cable band
relief; reinforced a t. with textile stripes;
modern framing.

Inscriptions: A) Painted inscription in
Cyrillic letters in lower central part:
KTITOR KOLYA OT BOY / ANA
OTETS BOSH / KO I PODRU / ZHIE
EGO (Donor Nicholas (Kolja) from
Bojana, (his) father Boschko and his
wife); B) A t. two paper labels with
hand-written text: 1. in blue ink:
R. de Maré; 2. in blue pencil: 26


PROVENANCE: Rolf de Maré; R. de Maré
Bequest 1966
CONSERVATION: Restored prior to entering
NM: cracks in joints mended with fabric a t
and retouched; painting cleaned, reconstruction
of upper right corner; retouches
mainly on top of Elijah’s hair and background,
upper and lower spline secured on
frame with metal mountings. Cracks in
upper and lower parts of panel; some flak -
ing of paint layer; silver on background
abraded; panel worm-eaten
This heraldic composition, showing
the four horses in front of Elijah’s chariot,
pulling it in four different directions,
recurs in post-Byzantine paint -
ing in Greece and the Balkans. Early
evidence of this in Greece is provided
by an icon dated 1655 and now in
Musée d’Art d’Historie in Geneva.1 A
somewhat later example from Bulgaria
is in the Church Museum of History
and Archaeology, Sofia (inv. no 3861).2
Another icon of this type is a northern
Greek, Macedonian 18th century icon
in the National Gallery, Athens (inv.
no 4952). The present version is characterised
by a popularly rooted stylisation
and a bid for symmetry.
The inscription on Elijah’s text band
comes from II Kings II:2.
1 Thon 1992, p 37.
2 Brussels 1977, no 122.
[slut]