A large extended Deisis, Northern School, second half of the 17th century

taken from an Iconostasis: the composition centred by the figure of Christ, behind His throne the Archangels Gabriel and Michael; on his right the Virgin extending her hands in intercession to her son; also seated are the Archangel Michael, St Peter, St John, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologan, John Zlatoust, Alexander Svirsky; on the left, Archangel Gabriel, John the Baptist, St Paul, St Nicholas, St Blasios, St Zosima and St Sabbattios of Solovetsky and St George

This icon with its rare combination of saints comes from a small chapel in the Russian North (possibly the Arkhangelsk or Vologda regions) where deises were often painted on a single horizontal board. The deisis flows inwards to the images of the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist by the templon of a Byzantine church, praying to God to save mankind.

Alexander Svirsky (1448-1533) founder of the Alexander Svirsky Monastery (1508), Zosima (d. 1478) - founder and first Abbot of the Solovetsky Monastery, and Savvatiy Solovetsky (d. 1435) are particularly revered in the North.