To the history of the Russian portrait

Abstract

The article suggests a brief history of the Russian portraiture. An analysis of the major records is given and some facts are specified. The first Russian portrait is undoubtedly the one of prince Svyatoslav Yaroslavich with his family members, as it is a miniature in the third oldest Russian book. The portrait of Cyril of White Lake, painted by Dionysius Glushitskiy in 1424, is analyzed. This portrait is often referred to as an icon, but mistakenly, as Cyril of White Lake was beatified over a century after the portrait had been made. The portrait may be considered one of the first realistic Russian portraits. The history of the early Russian portraits — parsunas — is considered. The comparison of the icon-portrait of Vasiliy III and the parsuna of Ivan IV makes it possible to attribute the art of parsunas to the 16th century. The article explores the transition to modern-age Russian portraiture.

Keywords:

history of the Russian portraiture, portrait, parsuna