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| The Icon The Virgin Tenderness is drawn from a study of three different icons: |
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The largest influence on the pose came from a Yaroslavian Russian prototype,The Virgin Eleousa (the Virgin of merciful or loving kindness) dating from 1430. The pose is slightly more formal than in the later icons derived from this type. The formality appealed to me because the icon you see here was commissioned for a church worship space. Because the church wanted the Child to face the alter, I also studied a Christ Anapeson representation of the Virgin Glykophilousa. The version I studied dates from the 16th century and introduced new elements to the Virgin Eleousa, some of which I have included. Lastly, I studied a Russian icon, Virgin of Tenderness (1908). The expression on Mary's face in the Icon appealed to me. I also borrowed elements of the Virgin’s robe from it. |
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| In a well-known homily, Photius,Patriarch of Constantinople, 858-867 A.D. described a vision which was later to become the inspiration for this icon: | |||
| “ A virgin mother, carrying in her pure arms, for the common salvation of our kind, the common creator, as an infant, that great and ineffable mystery of God.” | |||
| The meditation of the icon is “the great and ineffable mystery of God”. An understanding of the symbolism used in the image can aid this mediation. | |||
| About the symbolism: | |||
| In the prototype, Christ is held in both of the Virgin’s arms, he reaches up with one hand to caress his mother’s chin. The Virgin deeply inclines her face toward the Child and brings him close, tenderly pressing her face to his. The Child is slightly reclining, his legs are crossed and his feet bare. The Christ Child holds a scroll which is a symbol for himself, "The Word made flesh." |  |
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The half reclining pose with the crossed legs was first used to depict Jonah. It dates back to the early sarcophagi and funerary murals in the catacombs. Bringing this element into a depiction of the Virgin and Child connects Christ to Jonah the way that Christ himself did. (Matt.12: 39-40). | ||
| Therefore, the crossed legs become a symbol for the Passion of Christ. This pose will continue on to become an important element of the 16th century icon Virgin of the Passion. | |||
| The flutter of the Christ child’s humation (the golden robe) recalls the movement seen in the icon Decent into Hell and introduces into the composition the a symbol for the Resurrection. | |||
| On the chiton (the white shirt) of the Child, we see the Trinity represented in the golden florets and a reference to Christ,s blood sacrifice in the tiny drops of red. There seems to be a protectiveness between Mother and Child. They are joined by the tenderness of their mutual caress. However, the symbols speak of far more than the sharing of a loving moment. They recall the blood sacrifice, the separation by death and the victory of the Resurrection. Mary holds the mystery of salvation in her arms. The sorrowful look of love on her face reminds us that we are bought with a price beyond measure. For creator of the universe Himself has come into the world to accomplish it and this is the" ineffable mystery of God."
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