Icon depicting the meeting of Christ and the Woman of Samaria

The scene of Christ’s meeting with the Samaritan woman occupies the centre of the composition, of which it forms just part. Seated in front of a rock, Christ is holding his arm outstretched in a gesture of speech towards the woman of Samaria, who is holding a jug. Between them, there is a well. To their left, the Apostles’ movements indicate that they are engaged in intense conversation. On the right, we see a Gothic church and monks on a smaller scale. In the background, a rocky mountain with precipitous slopes in accordance with Byzantine models rises up in the centre, flanked by two walled cities of a sort encountered in Italian painting. A Tuscan landscape with lower and more gentle slopes covered in bushes, trees and small figures extends both in front of and behind the cities, following the rules of perspective. A light blue sky with clouds replaces the golden background. The icon is an outstanding example of the mixed painting style of the late 15th and early 16th century on Crete, in which elements of Byzantine painting are blended with aspects of late Gothic and early Renaissance art.

PUBLICATION
Chatzidakis N. 2007. Catalogue no. 133, in Skampavias K.—Chatzidakis N. (eds), Paul and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum.Byzantine and Post–Byzantine Art, Athens, 198–201.