Inscriptions in Slavonic identify the saints. 

Feast Day(s): Saint Helena and Saint Constantine, 21st of May; Saint Procopius, 22nd November; Saint Paraskevi, 28th of October

The icon is laid out in two registers and executed in the western Baroque style. In the top half we see the Virgin enthroned in the heavenly kingdom. On her left is God the Father, represented as Lord Sabaoth He holds a globus cruciger in his right hand, symbolising Christian authority. To her right, Christ leans on the cross and reaches out to crown the Virgin with his left hand. Above her, the Holy Spirit descends in the form of a dove, surrounded by rays of light.

On the lower register, we see the walls of Jerusalem, with Saints Constantine and Helena and to the right the True Cross. Saint Helena is accompanied by Saint Paraskevi and Saint Constantine is accompanied by Saint Procopius. Saint Paraskevi of Iconium is a 3rd century martyr who became a distinctly Russian saint, Procopius of Caesarea is another 3rd century martyr.

The Coronation of the Virgin is a subject commonly found in Western iconography. The icon dates from the 18th century, a time of strong western influence on Russian art and culture. One need only think of Bartolomeo Rastrelli’s Winter Palace to see the fashionable nature of Baroque architecture in the heart of Imperial Russia. Our icon represents the fusion of Western theology with Orthodoxy art.