Ancient icon “The meeting of the archangels” from Veliky Ustyug in the collection of the Russian museum: history, restoration and research of the monument

The article examines the ancient icon from the collection of the State Russian Museum, “The Meeting of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel”. The icon was found in the Arkhangelsk Church of the monastery of the same name in Veliky Ustyug, from where it was transferred to the Veliky Ustyug Museum of Local History in 1931. In 1959 - 1968, the icon was restored in the Central State Restoration Workshops (Moscow) by artist restorer A. N. Baranova, and then transferred to the Russian Museum. The article fo cuses on the results of the restoration, which radically changed the appearance of the icon and allowed us to raise the question of the time and place of its creation. The data from the restoration passport compiled by A. N. Baranova and the opinions of researchers who analyzed the images on the icon during the process of its uncovering are presented. To resolve the issue of the icon’s origin, data from the Sotnaya Book of Veliky Ustyug of 1630 is used. According to the information contained in the book, the icon was in the Church of the Entry of the Virgin into the Temple of the Archangel Michael Monastery. An analysis of the text of the Sotnaya Book leads to the conclusion that the image was venerated in Ustyug. According to the source, the icon had a precious frame with a crown, chaplet and grivna, decorated with stones and pearls. This information is confirmed by the results of a study of the icon under a microscope and radiography of its surface. A review of the existing literature and the results of the study of the icon allow us to return to the question of the place of its creation. In light of the work carried out, the most justified opinion seems to be that of G. I. Vzdornov, expressed back in the 1970s, about the creation of the icon in Veliky Ustyug. At the same time, the broad dating proposed by Vzdornov should be narrowed to the last quarter of the 13th century