Icons-art - 8/26/98

"Eiksua (Icons)" by Hrolf Herljolfssen.

NOTE: See also the files: icons-msg, religion-msg, rosaries-msg, brass-rub-msg,
painting-msg, pigments-msg, tiles-art.

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NOTICE -

This article was submitted to me by the author for inclusion in this set 
of files, called StefanÕs Florilegium. 

These files are available on the Internet at:
http://www.florilegium.org

Copyright to the contents of this file remains with the author.

While the author will likely give permission for this work to be 
reprinted in SCA type publications, please check with the author first
or check for any permissions granted at the end of this file.

                               Thank you,
                                    Mark S. Harris
                                    AKA:  Stefan li Rous
                                         stefan at florilegium.org
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First published in Kraken.

Eiksua  (Icons)
 by Hrolf Herljolfssen

The icon (or its absence) is central to the theology, and indeed to the
world-view of those cultures which derive their traditions from the Eastern
Roman Empire.  The use of these images (by the iconodules or lovers of
icons) and their rejection (by the iconoclasts or breakers of icons)
sparked of one of the great controversies of the Orthodox Churches.  The
crisis caused by this controversy is one of the contributing factors that
allowed the Bishop of Rome to make a play for power in establishing the
Western (or Catholic) Rite, independent of the Metropolitan of
Constantinople.

For an iconodule, the image itself is a magical object of veneration.
This is not because it is itself Holy, but because it stands as a
reflection or shadow of a sacred site or person.  For instance God is so
great that he casts an image that reverbrates throughout "reality".  We get
help in making contact with God by using one of these shadows of God.  In a
like fashion any other Holy person or place can be viewed or contacted by
the use of their own shadows if these shadows are constructed in the proper
fashion.  By possessing similarity (it depicts all "the characteristic
features of a holy person or a sacred event in accordance with authentic
sources" (Demus 1976: 7) - such as the lion and a gospel for St Mark) and
being made in a reverential and prayerful manner, it has taken on some of
this shadow or aura of God (or of the object of the icon).  The viewer who
approaches the icon of Jesus thus approaches Jesus.

In order to become a part of the shadow of a Holy person or place, the
image must conform to a strict set of requirements.  Any image that does
not fulfill this set of requiremnets cannot be an icon, but merely a
painting - even though the subject may be a holy one.  For example: Saints
Cosmas and Damian.  All icons of these 3rd century saints always depict
them as a pair wearing lined robes, hoods or other distinctive physician's
garb, surgeon's bags and instuments.  Of course, being saints they will
have halos.  They may also be depicted with a white man with one black leg
(Duchet-Suchaux and Pastoureau 1994: 100-1).

The requirements for a Holy Place are less strict, but cannot deviate from
the Biblical text.  Thus people may be dressed in garb of the artist's time
and the houses etc be likewise contemporary, but if a main character is
mentioned as being in a robe, that is what they must wear.

The use of the icon as a magical actuality that enabled the worshipper to
see a part of the real saint or place (1) helps explain the lack of
comprehension that the Byzantines had of the Crusades and pilgrimage
generally.  A devout believer need not go to the physical sites, for
cleansing, as they could contact those sites by going to any well decorated
church.  Thus, by moving to the appropriate part of your local Basilica (2)
and gazing upon a series of mosaic icons you could watch the Passion of
Christ.

1	This theory is no weirder than the Miracle of Trans-substantiation
(the bread and wine of the Sacrament are converted to the actual Body and
Blood of Christ), generally accepted within the Catholic Church today, but
heresy within most of the Middle Ages.

2	All Byzantine mosaics must be viewed from the correct angle (but
that is another story)

Reading that bears on the things talked about can be found in:

Buckton, David (editor) (1994) Byzantium: Treasures of Byzantine Art and
Culture British Museum Press, London, ISBN 0 7141 0577 5.

Demus, Otto (1976) Byzantine Mosaic Decoration: Aspects of Monumental Art
in Byzantium Caratzas Brothers, New Rochelle, ISBN 0 89241 018 3.

Duchet-Suchais, G and M. Pastoureau (1994) (trans David Howell) The Bible
and the Saints Flammarion, Paris ISBN 2Ý08013Ý564Ý3

Fischer, Peter (1971) Mosaic: History and Technique Thames and Hudson,
London, ISBN 0 500 23142 7.

Mango, Cyril (1994) Byzantium: The Empire of New Rome Phoenix, London,
ISBN 1Ý85799Ý130Ý3.

Morris, Colin (1989) The Papal Monarchy: the Western Church from 1050 to
1250 Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Sherrard, Phillip (1966) Byzantium Time-Life Books, New York, Library of
Congress 66Ý28334

-------
copyright 1998, Cary Lenehan

If this article is reprinted in a publication, I would appreciate a notice in
the publication that you found this article in the Florilegium. I would also
appreciate an email to myself, so that I can track which articles are being
reprinted. Thanks. -Stefan.

<the end>
Edited by Mark S. Harris	Icons-art	3