Christ Pantocrator is a painted wood panel dating back to the 6th century from St. Catherine’s Monastery located in Sinai, Egypt . This painting is considered one of the oldest Byzantine religious icons and is the earliest known work of the pantocrator style (Lowden, 66).
What does Christ the Pantocrator represent?
The icon Christ Pantocrator emphasizes Jesus’ omnipotence, his power to do anything . Jesus is the “Ruler of All” who sustains all things. The symbolism of Christ Pantocrator (explained below) borrows from Roman imperial imagery to project his sovereign power.
Who made the Christ Pantocrator?
The iconography of this scene was developed in the early 15th century in Russia by the Byzantine artist Feofan Grec (Theophanes the Greek) . The symbolic meaning of the composition finds its explanation in images of the Last Judgment, where Christ appears within a mandorla.
What is the role of Christ in His image of Pantocrator?
Christ Pantocrator has come to suggest Christ as a mild but stern, all-powerful judge of humanity . When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek as the Septuagint, Pantokrator was used both for YHWH Sabaoth “Lord of Hosts” and for El Shaddai “God Almighty”.
What was Christ icon painted on?
It was far away enough to survive the iconoclastic controversies that pervaded the Eastern Church for over 100 years, starting in the 8th century. The icon is painted with hot wax, a technique known as encaustic , onto a wooden panel, with dimensions of 84 cm height x 45.5 cm width x 1.2 cm depth.
What are the two natures of Jesus?
...that Christ’s person has two natures: divine and human . Basing this Christological issue on a psychological analysis of personality, he believed that the human and divine natures were some kind of union, as between body and soul.
What did iconoclasts believe?
Iconoclasm (from Greek: εἰκών, eikṓn, ‘figure, icon’ + κλάω, kláō, ‘to break’) is the social belief in the importance of the destruction of icons and other images or monuments , most frequently for religious or political reasons.
What book is Jesus holding?
RF 2G996FC–Christ Pantocrator blesses the congregation of the Roman Catholic Duomo or cathedral in Cefalu, Sicily, Italy, with his right hand, as his left hand holds an open book bearing the Greek and Latin Gospel text from John 8:12: “ I am the light of the world .
What means Theotokos?
Theotokos, (Greek: “God-Bearer” ), in Eastern Orthodoxy, the designation of the Virgin Mary as mother of God.
What is deesis mosaic?
The Deësis mosaic in Hagia Sophia
The monumental Deësis mosaic depicts Christ flanked by the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist approximately two and a half times larger than life . ... This type of image is referred to as a deësis (δέησις), which means “entreaty,” suggesting an act of asking, pleading, begging.
What does IC XC stand for?
IC XC is a Christogram abbreviation for Jesus Christ and NIKA is Conquers = Jesus Christ Conquers. this simple yet elegant .
Who painted Theotokos of Vladimir?
A legend formed that the icon was painted by Luke the Evangelist from life; the first written account of this story dates back to 1512. The intercession of the Theotokos through the image has also been credited with saving Moscow from Tatar hordes in 1451 and 1480.
Where did Jesus get born?
Bethlehem lies 10 kilometres south of the city of Jerusalem, in the fertile limestone hill country of the Holy Land. Since at least the 2nd century AD people have believed that the place where the Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem, now stands is where Jesus was born.
Who ended iconoclasm?
The second Iconoclast period ended with the death of the emperor Theophilus in 842. In 843 his widow, Empress Theodora, finally restored icon veneration, an event still celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the Feast of Orthodoxy.
What does Iconoclast literally mean?
Icon comes from the Greek eikōn, which is from eikenai, meaning “to resemble.” Iconoclast comes to us by way of Medieval Latin from Middle Greek eikonoklastēs, which joins eikōn with a form of the word klan, meaning “to break.” Iconoclast literally means “ image destroyer .”
Who are famous iconoclasts?
Berns profiles people such as Walt Disney , the iconoclast of animation; Natalie Maines, an accidental iconoclast; and Martin Luther King, who conquered fear. Berns says that many successful iconoclasts are made not born. For various reasons, they simply see things differently than other people do.
