Virgin Mary of Valaam, Orthodox Christian Embossed Gold Foil Icon

Size: 14" x 8 1/2"

According to the inscription, the icon was painted in 1878, "the work of the monks of Valaam." It is customarily attributed, however, to Father Alipy, one of the leading iconographers at the original Valaam Monastery in Lake Ladoga in Russian Karelia. Father Alipy painted the icon only a few years after he arrived at the monastery, before he had become a novice there. He was tonsured to monastic orders in 1884 and ordained as priestmonk in 1893.

Following the conventions of the late 19th century, the icon was painted in a "naturalistic" style, employing a technique that combined the use of tempera and oils.