Moscow, June 20, 2017
Photo: Foma.ru An icon of the Lord Jesus Christ, miraculously renewed while in storage in a repository, has been entered into the permanent “The Mysterious World of Orthodox Icons” exhibition in the Uman Museum of Local Lore in central Ukraine. The exhibition opened last week, with the Savior in Prison (or the Bridegroom) Icon taking a prominent place in the display, reports Foma in Ukraine.
The icon, considered to be a copy of more ancient icons, was painted on metal by an unknown artist in the beginning of the 19th century. It was transferred to the museum by the secretary of the Umam regional executive committee on February 11, 1972, upon the closing of the church in Babanka village in the Cherkassy Region. It was in very poor condition at that time: The iron board was completely rusted on both sides, the paint bubbling in several places, and so darkened that it was impossible to distinguish the subject of the icon.
Given the icon’s dilapidated condition, it was not transferred to any of the churches that opened in Uman in the 1990s.
Then the icon began to change, as museum workers first noticed in July 2008. A greasy resinous substance was seen flowing on the icon, making the image brighter. During observations, museum researchers first noticed the face, halo, chest, and cloak of the Lord Jesus Christ appearing. Other parts of the image later emerged, particularly the whites of His eyes, the inscription, and even the leaves on the stick in the Savior’s hand.
One priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church who has inspected the icon noted that icons are not infrequently miraculously renewed in the houses of faithful Orthodox Christians and in Orthodox churches, but such a miracle occurring in a place where prayers are not read is a unique occurrence.
The museum’s art specialists are working on reconstructing the history of the icon, watching the process of the face’s renewal, which is ongoing.
