Visual Images of Patriarch Nikon: An Electronic Digital Gallery
Compiled by Kevin M. Kain, Ph.D. Texas A&M University-Texarkana

Nikon, Nikita Minov (1605), is one of the most complex and controversial figures in Russian History. Born into a peasant family, Nikon quickly rose through the ranks of the ecclesiastical hierarchy to become the patriarch of Moscow and all Russia (1652-1666), the second most powerful position in the Muscovite state. Capable of pious acts of charity and humility, daring political maneuvers and dazzling displays of authority, his tenure in the church hierarchy coincided with major political and legal reforms which tore the fabric of Russian society.

In 1666, he was tried by a church council, removed from the patriarchal chair and sentenced to exile in a remote northern monastery. In 1681 Nikon was recalled from imprisonment, but died during the return journey. Nikon was officially rehabilitated shortly thereafter in 1682.

Nikon was an important champion of the visual arts who clearly understood the power and potential of visual imagery. On the one hand he staunchly defended traditional Russian icon painting. On the other hand, Nikon embraced the western-style portraits known as parsunae which became popular among the Moscow elite in the mid-17th century. In fact, Nikon established a reputation among his contemporaries for commissioning life-like portraits of himself.

Learn more (in English and Russian):

— Who was Patriarch Nikon?
— Visit the Gallery

Posted by DL