FEATURES OF THE ICONS OF THE HOLY TRINITY FROM THE MYRHOROD AND PEREIASLAV REGIMENTS OF THE 17TH–18TH CENTURIES

Abstract

This article is dedicated to the stylistic and iconographic features of the Holy Trinity icons from the 17th and 18th centuries, originating from the Myrhorod and Pereiaslav regiments. Administratively, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Pereiaslav and Myrhorod regiments were part of the Hetmanate. In 1796, they became part of the Little Russia Governorate, and from 1802 to 1920, these territories were incorporated into the newly established Poltava Governorate. To date, only two Holy Trinity icons from the Hetmanate period, connected to the historical territories of the Poltava region, have been discovered. The 17th-century Holy Trinity icon from the village of Baryshivka is the oldest known icon of this theme in Left-Bank Ukraine. In 1685, with the support of Pereiaslav Colonel Radion Dmytrashko, the Trinity Church was built in Baryshivka. Stylistically, the icon represents a synthesis of late Renaissance and Baroque, characteristic of Hetmanate iconography in the second half of the 17th century. The icon from Baryshivka possesses an original symbolic and theological content, expressed through different interpretations of blessing gestures, floral decorations, and the ornamentation of the background. In the icon, the Logos is represented as the central angel, identified by the Greek letters O ѠN (in the traditional Greek placement), a unique feature of the Baryshivka icon. The church and iconostasis in Velyki Sorochyntsi were built in 1734 with the funds of Hetman of Ukraine Danylo Apostol. The church was intended to serve as the Hetman’s family mausoleum. The icon shows stylistic features of Baroque and Rococo. The gilded embossed background of the icon is adorned with an acanthus pattern featuring poppy flowers. A unique element is the depiction of the sun above the central angel – the Logos. The article provides an analysis of the iconography and offers interpretations of different variants of blessing gestures and the symbolism of the floral elements in the icons. The aim of the article is to identify the stylistic and iconographic features of the Holy Trinity icons from the historical Poltava region during the Hetmanate period.