The image of Saint Nicholas Thaumaturgos in the medieval Russian book miniature. E. Serebrjakova (Moscow)

The paper contains a review of some manuscripts with the miniatures of Saint Nicholas deposed in the State History Museum (SHM). Working on the catalogue of narrative and lyturgical texts dedicated to Saint Nicholas we have separate a few manuscripts with miniatures of the Saint's. They are closely connected with the development of his iconographical tradition in the whole. The earliest codex with the picture of Saint Nicholas is Prolog (Synaxarion) for September – february (SHM Sinod. 247) dated back to the 2nd half of the 14^th century. The manuscript is written on the parchement, some codicological and paleographical features allow to suppose its provenance from Rostov Velikii. On the frontispiece (f. 1r) we can see Saint Nicholas standing to the right of the monumental figure of Saint Symeon Stylite, whose Life opens the lectures on the 1st of September. The Life of Saint Nicholas is also inserted in the manuscript on the 6th of December (f. 153–156 v.). Although the painting and the inscriptions on the miniature have some losses, the type of face, posture and clothes of Saint Nicholas corresponds to the ancient icohographical tradition well-known in byzantine icons, mural paintings and miniatures going back to 10^th–11^th centuries. Probably the figure of Saint Nicholas was placed on the frontispiece by order of customer of the same name, or it testified to the creation of this codex for the church or monastery named in honour of the Saint's.

It must be marked that in Russian manuscripts of the 11^th–15^th centuries the images of Saint Nicholas or scenes from his Life are found very rare. The famouse manuscript ordered by Tzar Ivan the Terrible with unique cycle of 408 miniatures was created only in the 70th of the 16th century (RGB. Bolsh. 15). In the SHM collection deposes a copy from the above-mentioned 16th century original, created in the 40s of 17th century for Tzar Alexei Michailovitsh (SHM. Ps 6/12). In 1672 this codex was donated to the Nicholo-Ugreshskii monastery. It is one of the most remarkable monuments of 17th century miniature. The great importance of this copy is that it demonstrates direct relationship between two individual manuscripts with 408 pictures both made by order of Russian tzars. In the Ugresha manuscript all the compositions of original were reproduced, but in the same time they have reflected some traits of the art style of the new epoch. The manuscropt became an independent title-folio with rich baroque ornaments, a magnificent ornamental frame in bright colours with gold and silver surrounding the figure of Saint Nicholas on the frontispiece.

In the SHM collection deposes s.n. «Tzar's Book» («Zarstvennaja kniga») – the last part of the monumental Illustrated Chronical Code created in the 70s of the 16th century (Sinod. 149). In the cycle of the drawings illustrating «The Story about the Death of Great Prince Vassily III» there are a few representations of miracle icons of Saint Nicholas especially venerated by Tzar's family. In the same codex there are two drawings to «The Story about the Siege of Kazan» where Saint Nicholas is appeared with the Prophecy about Tzar's victory to one of the warriors. In the other volume of Chronicle Code (SHM Sinod. 962) 25 miniatures are accompanied the Report about the transportation of the miracle icon of Saint Nicholas Velikoretzkii from Viatka to Moscow in 1555. Like the initiators and active participants of this solemn event there were depicted Ivan the Terrible together with members of his family.

For comparative research of the variations of Russian iconography tradition of Saint Nicholas are of interest the monuments of 17th–19th c. book miniature. They reflect certain important aspects of popular veneration of the Saint's. For example, in an oldbeliever's manuscript of the end of 18th c. (SHM Mus. 164) the image of Saint Nicholas is placed before the texts about the penance and death memory together with the miniature of Archangel Michail (f. 1 v.). It testify to the fact of the unbroken and continuous tradition of Saint Nicholas worship as the protector of the deceased's soul. Many typical features of the local schools of art (Moscow, Jaroslavl, Northern Russia a. o.) are reflected in some illustrated manuscripts containing various artistic interpretation of the Saint Nicholas Life (SHM coll.: Bars. 702, Schuk. 414, Mus. 834).