The pious tradition of creating family icons originated as early as the early Christian era — namesake saints of members of the imperial family were included in compositions of frescoes and icons placed on the altar screen (iconostasis). In Rus' an icon of the saints who were the heavenly patrons of family members — those who bore the same names — was commissioned for the wedding day or after the birth of the firstborn. Often images of saints sharing names with ancestors were painted on the icon.
A family icon was also the name given to an image especially revered within the family, often passed from parents to children on the day of the wedding.\r\n\r\nThe external distinguishing feature of a family icon is its subject: on a single icon saints are depicted who are not connected by events of sacred history or by church tradition. Thus a 'heavenly family tree' is formed, which allows all members of the family to gather before the icon and pray for everyone.
The iconography of the family icon has its own features. As a rule, an image of the Savior blessing the family, or of the Mother of God extending a heavenly Protection over the family, is painted in the upper part of the icon. At the same time, 'family saints' are depicted with their hands raised. Compositions with a Guardian Angel in the center are also encountered. Such family icons are represented in the collection of the A.S. Pushkin Cherdyn Local History Museum.\r\n\r\nThe size of a family icon varies — from church-sized (100x115 cm) and lectern/analoy (30x40 cm) to pyadnitsa (20x27 cm) and household (10x15 cm).\r\n\r\nThere is another type of family icon called 'poleosnye' (field-style). In such an icon the family's patron saints are located not in the central medallion but on its fields. In the central part of the icon is placed the image of Christ Pantocrator or a particularly venerated image of the Mother of God. The saints depicted on the fields turn in prayer to the central image on behalf of their charges.\r\n\r\nA family icon can also be a 'chastnik' — an icon that includes several images in the center, for example the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos (long considered a blessing for family life), the Not-Made-by-Hands image of the Savior, and the Guardian Angel. On one of the panels of such an icon the patron saints may be depicted, or they may appear in small framed panels (kleimas) on the fields. The museum's collection includes such an icon: at the center are images of Sophia, the Wisdom of God; the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos; Archangel Michael; the Not-Made-by-Hands image of the Lord; and selected saints on the fields.
You can get a closer look at the family icon and see the preserved works of icon painting in the new exhibition 'Church Art of the Northern Prikamye', the opening of which is planned for December of this year at the Museum of the History of Faith.\r\n
