Religious Art Collection

The National Museum of Art of Moldova holds a valuable collection of religious art, comprising about 1,249 pieces, including icons, liturgical objects, church books, and more.

The collection was formed as a result of expeditions to study cult works, a project initiated by art historian and critic Kir Rodnin in the early 1960s, in collaboration with Ada Zevin, a painter and art critic, assisted by a group of restorers and museum curators. Based on a Government Decision (No. 287, August 29, 1968), the Republican Fund of Medieval Art from Moldova was established as a subdivision of the museum.

The only Bessarabian icon from the 16th century is the Mother of God Hodighitria, which comes from the St. Elijah Church in Chișinău (no longer existing today).

Another icon, dated from the late 17th century to early 18th century, is Prophet Moses, which comes from the Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God in the village of Sănătăuca (Soroca). The icon follows the iconographic canon and is of Greek origin, confirmed by the Greek inscription on the scroll held by the prophet.

Among the artists known for their works from the 18th–19th centuries are iconographers such as painter Gherasim, sculptor Ștefan, monk Iezechil, Ioan Iavorschi, Mihail Leontovici, Constantin and Mardare, and Ioan Dămășcanu.

A special place in the religious art of Moldova from the 17th–19th centuries is held by folk icons. One of their particularities is the rustic atmosphere with a vibrant color expression, reduced to a few colors, and the naive treatment of subjects, representing a strict frontal vision of the faces. The earliest naive-style icons include Jesus Pantocrator and Mother of God Hodighitria, dated from the 18th century, from the wooden church of Boroseni village (Edineț).

The archaic form and ingenuity of folk painters are also evident in the icons Jacob’s Dream and The Good Shepherd, which represent a direct interpretation of biblical parables.

Two other icons of certain artistic value were signed by folk painter Mihail Leontovici: Mother of God with Child Jesus on the Throne (1803) and Saint George Killing the Dragon (1806).

In the 19th century, there was a clear increase in the number of signed and dated icons. Among the early 19th-century works, a notable duo of talented masters stands out: painter Gherasim and sculptor Ștefan, who left behind the iconostasis of the St. Demetrius Church in the village of Cogâlniceni (Orhei).

19th-century Bessarabian icons developed the previous iconographic traditions, proposing a new approach to established canons and a wide variety of iconographic subjects. Along with images of Christ, the Mother of God, and Saint Nicholas, the archangels Michael and Gabriel, or Saint George, icons began to feature images of Saint Barbara, Mary Magdalene, Saint Haralampie, and biblical themes like Jacob’s Dream and The Good Shepherd.

Icons signed by Ioan Iavorschi are notable for the refinement of their drawing and color, emphasized by the texture relief of the surfaces. The icons Jesus Christ on the Throne and Mother of God with Child on the Throne from the St. Nicholas Church in Horodiște are exemplary in this regard. Other icons from the church in Ivancea village (Orhei) – Mother of God with Child (1827) and Archangel Michael (1827) – reveal the stylistic evolution of Ioan Iavorschi. The elements of the icons are in relief, gilded or silvered, with rich decoration and chiaroscuro gradations in the painting of hands and faces, reflecting clear Baroque influence.

In the second half of the 19th century, secular elements persisted, especially in icons painted by monk Iezechil for the iconostasis of the St. Nicholas Church at the Căpriana Monastery, depicting the prophets Aaron and Moses, and the prophets David and Iezechil.

Secular influence is also evident in the iconographers Constantin and Mardare, who painted the iconostasis of the church in Baimaclia village. The Annunciation motif lacks clear contours, with the figures’ form and volume rendered in light or dark tones.

The Religious Art Collection has also been enriched by donations. In 2007, painter Aurelia Roman donated 17 works. Another significant donation of icons occurred in 2013, consisting of twenty glass icons and one on wood from Transylvania, dating from the 19th–20th centuries, donated by Romanian painter and collector Sever Săsărman.

Thanks to the efforts of conservation and restoration specialists in the museum’s Restoration Laboratories, these valuable works are now accessible to the public.

In a world irreversibly seduced by speed and technology, the icon invites rest, introspection, and awareness of who we are or should be. Through the pieces in the Religious Art Collection presented in the permanent exhibition, the National Museum of Art of Moldova offers a space for refuge and reflection, as well as the joy of admiring works of undeniable artistic value.