Restoration of icon-painting

Restoration of icons was already started in the monastery period. In autumn 1918 participants of an expedition led by Alexander Alexandrovich Anisimov strengthened and partly unveiled the original painting on 74 panels from the churches of the Kirillo-Belozersky monastery. Among them A.I. Anisimov made trial clearing of a Wonderworking image of the Mother of God Hodegetria which had been brought, according to the legend, by St. Kirill Belozersky from Moscow, and another restorer P.I. Yukin began to work on a life-time portrait of St. Kirill created according to the tradition by St. Dionisy Glushitsky. At the same time specialists investigated the Ferapontov monastery and strengthened several icons which were in very bad state. In 1919 the expedition of A.I. Anisimov visited Kirillov again.

At the beginning of the 1920-s restoration of icons was continued. In 1921 the First All-Russian Conference for Restoration took place and in accordance with its decision the Russian Museum became a centre of restoration of works from the northern regions of the country. As a result, some tens of icons were removed from the Kirillo-Belozersky and Ferapontov monasteries to Leningrad for restoration in 1922-1923. Unfortunately, most of them have not been returned.

After the museum was opened in the second half of the 1920-s – early 1930-s an expedition of the Central State Restoration Workshops worked in Kirillov and Ferapontovo. It was also headed by A.I. Anisimov. Thus in 1930 the members of this expedition were clearing and strengthening murals in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillo-Belozersky monastery and in the Nativity of the Virgin Cathedral in the Ferapontov monastery. Besides, restores cleared and reinforced 8 icons from the churches of St. Epiphanius and St. Sergey Radonezhsky.

In 1936-1937 specialists from Leningrad - the expert of the inspection controlling preservation of monuments Y.P. Gamza and the artist and restorer N.V. Pertsev – investigated the church of the Deposition of the Robe in the village Borodava of the Kirillov district. Y.P. Gamza having studied the icons visually, made a supposition that the Deesis tier (10 panels), 3 icons from the local range and one from the sanctuary (“Crucifixion”) were created by the great Russian icon-painter Dionisy with masters. The scientist thought that they were in the Ferapontov Cathedral, but after the fire which happened there in the late 17^th – early 18^th centuries, there were transported to the church belonging to the monastery. In 1937 N.V. Pertsev made trail clearings of some panels. This investigation gave an opportunity to attribute 5 icons to Dionisy (a patronal icon “Deposition of the Robe and the girdle of the Virgin”, “Trinity”, icons from the Deesis “St. Basil the Great”, “St George”, “St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki”). Besides, Y.P. Gamza raised a question about the necessity “to transport the unique and first-class architectural and pictorial complex of the church to the territory of the Kirillo-Belozersky museum-reserve. But these plans were realized only in 1957.

Investigation and restoration of icons ceased when the II World War began. The main task of employees at that difficult time was to preserve the collections. 

After the war in the 1950-1960-s icons were restored regularly mainly by two institutions - the State Central Restoration workshop of I.E. Grabar and the State Russian Museum.

In 1957 the employees of the Grabar workshop examined the collection of icons in the repository, exhibitions and iconostases. It turned out that its considerable part required restoration. 30 panes which were in very bad state were strengthened. Since that time specialists of the State Central Restoration workshop came to Kirillov museum every summer to carry out restoration and conservation. During 10 years they worked with more than 100 icons from the churches of Kirillo-Belozersky and the gateway churches of the Ferapontov monasteries. About 30 panels were restored in Moscow, including icons from the church of the Deposition of the Robe. 

At that time our museum actively cooperated with the Russian Museum. Nikolay Vasilievich Pertsev and Samuil Fedorovich Konenkov examined and selected works for restoration. Specialists of the Russian Museum restored about 20 icons of the 16^th-17^th centuries from the Kirillo-Belozersky monastery and the Nativity of the Virgin Cathedral in Ferapontovo, including several works removed from the museum already in 1922. In 1961 they were returned. 9 images were restored by the outstanding Russian restorer - Nikolay Vasilievich Pertsev from 1958 till 1971. Among them - such recognized masterpieces of the Russian art as the icons of the Nativity of the Virgin Cathedral created by Dionisy in early 16^th century “St. Basil the Great”, “the Virgin of the Sign, David and Solomon” and “Prophets Daniel, Jeremiah, Isaiah” and also a panel from the famous iconostasis of the Assumption Cathedral (1497) “Prophets Hosea, Amos and Zephaniah”. Now they are displayed in the main exhibition in the House of Father Superior.

In 1964 the head of the museum holdings A.A. Kashina made the first plan of restoration and conservation. It included some 16^th century icons and iconostases of the Assumption Cathedral, the church of St. John Climacus, the church of Transfiguration, the side-chapel of St. Dionisy Glushitsky, the church of Sergey Radonezhsky. Altogether there were 164 works. The list of them was sent to the All-Union central research laboratory for conservation and restoration. This plan became a program for restores for the next decades.

The work in the 1970-1980-s became large-scale and complex. Simultaneously with restoration of the churches, iconostases of the Kirillo-Belozersky museum were also restored by four largest institutions: the All-Russian Research Institute for restoration, the All-Russian Artistic Scientific and Restoration Centre of the academician I.E. Grabar (till 1973 - the State Central Restoration workshop), the Inter-Regional Special Scientific Restoration Workshop “Rosrestavratsiya”, the Vologda Special Scientific Restoration Workshop. Besides, since 1972 there was a restorer of tempera painting in the staff of the museum.

Huge work was done by the Department of tempera painting restoration of the All-Russian Research Institute for restoration of museum values headed by O.V. Lelekova. During 20 years its specialists using new methods which they had prepared, restored several iconostases of the 15^th-18^th centuries: from the Assumption Cathedral, the churches of St. John Climacus, of St. Epiphanius and of St. John the Baptist.

In the 1980-s interior of the church of Transfiguration with a four-level iconostasis of the 16^th century and iconostases of the side-chapels dating back to the 18^th century was opened for visitors. They were restored by the All-Russian Artistic Scientific and Restoration Centre of I.E. Grabar and by a team of the Inter-Regional Special Scientific Restoration Workshop led by I.P. Yaroslavtsev.

Besides, the Grabar Centre worked with iconostases of the gateway churches and the Nativity of the Virgin Cathedral of the Ferapontov monastery in the second half of the 1970-s.

As for the Inter-Regional Special Scientific Restoration Workshop it restored the iconostases of the churches of Annunciation and St. Martinian there.

Specialists of the Vologda Special Scientific Restoration Workshop restored several panels and the iconostasis dating back to the late 17^th century from the church of St. Prophet Elijah in Belozersk.

A lot was done at this time by the museum employees. They not only carried out restoration, but examined the holding regularly, executed restoration records, made up scientific passports.

Exhibitions summed up restores’ work. The Kirillo-Belozersky museum took active part in them. We can mention the following exhibitions: “Restoration of museum artistic values in the USSR” (Moscow, the All-Russian central research laboratory for conservation and restoration of museum and artistic values, 1977), “60 years of restoration” (Moscow, the All-Russian Artistic Scientific and Restoration Centre of I.E. Grabar, 1978), “New discoveries of Soviet restores” (Leningrad, the All-Russian Artistic Scientific and Restoration Centre of I.E. Grabar, 1979), “Old Russian art. New discoveries” (Moscow, the All-Russian Artistic Scientific and Restoration Centre of I.E. Grabar, 1979), “New in the Soviet restores’ work” (Italy, Ministry of Culture of the USSR, 1979).

The largest event in the cultural life of the country was the exhibition ”Kirillov iconostasis of the 15^th century” organized in Moscow in 1980 by the All-Russian Research Institute for restoration together with some museums – the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum, the State Russian Museum, the State Tretyakov Gallery, the Andrei Rublev Museum. A wonderful grandiose iconostasis of the Assumption Cathedral created by the leading Moscow masters in 1497 by request of the Kirillov monastery was represented there.

The last decade of the 20^th century was a difficult period in the museum life. Insufficient state financing led to reduction of the restoration work scale. Icons were restored at that time by the State Research Institute for restoration (till 1991 – the All-Russian Research Institute for restoration), the association “Vologdarestavratsya” (earlier – the Vologda Special Scientific Restoration Workshop), the brothers Fedyshin, and also museum specialists. They mainly carried out old restoration projects. They continued restoration of the panels from the church of St. Prophet Elijah in Belozersk, prepared icons for an exhibition “St. Kirill Belozersky and saints of the Russian North”, strengthened and cleared works from the museum collection. As a result, some tens of icons painted in the 17^th – early 20^th centuries were restored. In 1998 the museum participated in the exhibition “Revived masterpieces of the Russian North: study and restoration of the works of artistic culture in the Vologda Region” which took place in Vologda.

A peculiarity of the last years is that funding sources of restoration have changed. Now we use not only state means, but the own means of the museum as well. Besides, we pursue the course of restoration by special-purpose programs.

Summing everything up, we can say that huge work has been carried out by the restorers over the last decades which revived more than a third of the icon collection. Many restored works were created by the leading Russian masters and recognized as masterpieces of our culture. Restoration gave an opportunity to put new works into scientific use, to build new exhibitions, to open church interiors with the 16^th-18^th centuries iconostases for visitors. All this contributed to the rise of interest in the Russian religious art and ancient monasteries in our country and abroad, among the lovers of the antique and specialists.