Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus, The

Painting

-

Purdue University Galleries

Name/Title

Seven Holy Sleepers of Ephesus, The

Entry/Object ID

2005.02.088

Description

Tempera on slightly curved wooden panel bordered in red, black, and mustard yellow. In the left margin is a male figure on black background with gold halo in red robes. A red Cyrillic caption sits in the top center, and below it is an image of the Virgin and child in the clouds. The Virgin wears a maroon head veil and has a star motif over her forehead and shoulder. The child wears orange robes and holds a scroll in his left hand. Below them in a cave are seven male figures, each with gold leaf halos, clean shaven with short hair asleep.

Type of Painting

Panel

Artwork Details

Medium

Tempera

Collection

Betsy Scheuring Icon Collection

Acquisition

Accession

2005.02

Source or Donor

Betsy Scheuring

Acquisition Method

Gift

Credit Line

Gift of Betsy Scheuring

Made/Created

Date made

1800 - 1850

Place

* Untyped Place

Central Russia

Lexicon

Nomenclature 4.0

Nomenclature Secondary Object Term

Icon

Nomenclature Primary Object Term

Symbol, Religious

Nomenclature Sub-Class

Religious Objects

Nomenclature Class

Ceremonial Objects

Nomenclature Category

Category 08: Communication Objects

Dimensions

Height

12-7/8 in

Width

10-3/4 in

Depth

1-1/4 in

Exhibition

Spirit Made Tangible: The Scheuring Icon Collection (2006)

Interpretative Labels

Label Type

Cultural/Historical Context

Label

The seven sleepers were Christian youths at Ephesus who sought refuge in a cave from the persecutions of the Roman Emperor Decius in the 3rd century. They were sealed in the cave and miraculously fell asleep for two hundred years, only to awaken and find that the city of Ephesus had been Christianized. Not long after their awakening, the seven died. Their names are Iamvlikh, Ioann, Dionisy, Eksakustodian, Antonin, Martinian, and Maximilian. The present depiction of the subject is typical, with the seven sleepers shown lying together in a cave within a hill. In the clouds above the sleepers appears the Mother of God with the infant Christ. A saint is painted in the margin, and it is possible that he represents a family saint or the donor of the icon.