Researchers from the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences have discovered large fragments of a 17th-century iconostasis in the attic of a church in Nowoberezowo (Podlaskie). In their opinion, it is the oldest such work of art in the region; a unique one, as evidenced by its originality and state of preservation.
The discovery was made during a project entitled “Consolidation of heritage. Inventory and documentation of monuments on the western border of the eastern lands of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth”. The discovery was made by Dr. Zbigniew Michalczyk, Piotr Jamski and Jan Nowicki from the Catalog of Art Monuments in Poland team.
Large fragments of the iconostasis, dating back to the 17th century, were found during research in the Hajnówka district, in the attic of the church of St. John the Theologian in Nowoberezowo, researchers announced in Białystok, where the discovery was presented. There are a total of 17 fragments in various states of preservation.
During the presentation, the researchers showed photographs of the discovered fragments and details of individual icons. They also presented a reconstruction of the entire iconostasis, based on a compilation of discovered fragments and archives, showing the locations of individual icons.
“We have absolutely no doubt that this is a unique discovery. From the very beginning, when we realized what we were dealing with, we were convinced that it was extremely important,” Jan Nowicki told Polish news agency PAP.
According to researchers, the iconostasis from Nowoberezowo is the oldest such object in the region. During the meeting, they emphasized that almost all objects of this type from the 17th and 18th centuries in the Russian partition were destroyed in the 19th or 20th century.
Dr. Zbigniew Michalczyk said that there was almost no analogy to the discovered iconostasis. He mentioned that small relics of 17th-century modern iconostasis in Podlaskie had been preserved, for example, in the churches in Bielsk Podlaski and Augustów. An analogy - as Michalczyk added - may be the 17th-century icons from the monastery in Supraśl, found a few years ago by researchers in the cemetery chapel in Topilec.
Large fragments of the iconostasis, dating back to the 17th century, were found during research in the Hajnówka district, in the attic of the church of St. John the Theologian in Nowoberezowo, researchers announced in Białystok, where the discovery was presented. There are a total of 17 fragments in various states of preservation.
During the presentation, the researchers showed photographs of the discovered fragments and details of individual icons. They also presented a reconstruction of the entire iconostasis, based on a compilation of discovered fragments and archives, showing the locations of individual icons.
“We have absolutely no doubt that this is a unique discovery. From the very beginning, when we realized what we were dealing with, we were convinced that it was extremely important,” Jan Nowicki told Polish news agency PAP.
According to researchers, the iconostasis from Nowoberezowo is the oldest such object in the region. During the meeting, they emphasized that almost all objects of this type from the 17th and 18th centuries in the Russian partition were destroyed in the 19th or 20th century.
Dr. Zbigniew Michalczyk said that there was almost no analogy to the discovered iconostasis. He mentioned that small relics of 17th-century modern iconostasis in Podlaskie had been preserved, for example, in the churches in Bielsk Podlaski and Augustów. An analogy - as Michalczyk added - may be the 17th-century icons from the monastery in Supraśl, found a few years ago by researchers in the cemetery chapel in Topilec.
Source: Science in Poland, PAP
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