Icon painting is one of the most ancient trends in art. After all, he is already at least 1000 years old. Various relics of spiritual mastery are kept in private collections. And often it becomes a matter of personal prestige of each collector to find out the real age of the icon. Moreover, this can be determined by several parameters.
Instructions
Step 1
If you want to get a detailed analysis of the icon - age, condition, by whom it was written, etc. - then you had better give it to the icon-painting workshop. There, masters who are specially trained and know all the subtleties will be able to tell you everything about your relic as closely as possible.
Step 2
If you want to determine for yourself what period your icon belongs to, look at the base on which it is drawn. Very old ones have always been depicted on wood. But with this point you need to be very careful. Indeed, in some cases, modern icon painters can paint it "antique". And for a person who is ignorant of the basics of painting and religious culture, it will be quite difficult to determine how ancient the icon is in front of him.
Step 3
But icons were made on tin in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Usually, the name of the factory was indicated on the end. If it exists and is well preserved, then you can try to restore the age of the icon using it. The only drawback of such an icon is that it does not represent any artistic value. Interesting only from the point of view of historical and cultural heritage.
Step 4
If you are well versed in the intricacies of the work of different master icon painters, the age of the icon can be determined precisely by the style of their work. Some artists of past centuries left certain notches on the reverse side of a religious painting. They did this in order to leave themselves a kind of reminder of who the customer is, what the plot of the future image should be and how much time he has to do this work.
Step 5
The technique of applying paint is no less important for determining the age of an icon. In different centuries, it changed regularly. Also pay attention to the base coat. This is also an important indicator of the antiquity of the image. Well, and of course, the image itself. Each century has its own manner of depicting the faces of saints. In order to understand all the intricacies, arm yourself with an art critic's dictionary and start studying the work of art you have.
