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"St. George with scenes from his life"
written by Ustinian Tilov
Catalog # 1.31
Medium: tempera on wood.
Hand-made according to the
Bulgarian Iconographic tradition and
techniques.
Possible heights:
A) 19 - 21 cm
B) 25 - 27 cm
C) 38 - 40 cm
As for the width, the proportions of the original icon will
be kept.
Turnovo.By Yoan of Chevindol. Tempera on wood.
90 x 72.5 cm. Now at the Old Bulgarian Art department
of the National Art Gallery
St. George mounted on a gray horse, is riding to the
right. He holds the reins in his outstretched left hand,
and pierces the dragon's mouth with his long spear, held in his right hand. He wears a short dark blue tunic and brown armour. A red mantle fastened at the front, floats freely. A martyr's wreath crowns his head. A
bareheaded , holding a pitcher and a towel in his hands and wearing a red garment, is also sitting on the horse. He is probably the son of Leo the Paphlagonian, whom the Saint saved with his famous miracle. The pierced dragon, its red wings spread, has coiled his tail around the horse's hind legs. There is a white cord tied around the dragon's neck. The end is held by a female figure with a crown on her head -a symbol of royalty. She is standing in front of a hihg tower, symbolizing the city, from which the King and Queen are watching the miracle. The action takes place in a brown hilly landscape with bushes in blossom. The lake where the Saint encountered the Princess and saved her from the dragon according to his famous miracle, is in the lower left corner. The faces are brown to light ochre, a characteristic feature of many icons from Veliko Turnovo region. Shown on the border surrounding the central figure are twelve scenes from the life of the Saint. Painted in the upper part, according to the inscriptions are:(1) St. George conversing with the king;(2) St. George is taken to the dungeon;(3) The whipping of the Saint; (4) The torture on the wheel; (5) The torture in the lime; (6)The Saint is given poison; (7) The Saint endures martyrdom in prison; (8) The Saint demolished the idols;(9) The Saint saves the ox of the peasant Glicaerius;(10) The Saint brings the dead back to life;(11) St. George is beheaded; (12) Queen Alexandra is beheaded. There is an inscription on the
lower part of the icon which reads: "In the year 1684; by the hand of Yoan of Chevindol"