The Entry of Christ into Jerusalem

Type: Icon

Period: 1900 year

Author: Dimiter Sirleshtov and Konstantin Marunchev

Dimiter Sirleshtov - born in 1838 in Bansko. He studies iconography with Simeon Molerov as a teacher. Later on he becomes a student of Mihalko Golev and starts practicing wood-carving and house constructing. In the period 1890-1898 he paints the church “Saint Mother of God” in Boboshevo. Together with his apprentice Kostadin Popov he paints another church in Boboshevo – “St. Elijah” He paints the churches of the following villages of Kyustendil Province: Dragodan, Buranovo, Tzarkvishte and Palatovo. He makes decorative wall paintings in some private homes. Despite his long experience as iconographer he has never reached the level of his teachers. One can see the lack of vivid coloring in his works. Dimitar Sirleshtov uses in his works, one particular erminia, translated by himself in Bulgarian. He dies in 1913 in Bansko. Kostadin (Kotse) Marunchev - Born in 1886 in Bansko. Had started studying iconography at first under Dimiter T. Sirleshtov, Mihalko Golev and Simeon D. Molerov. Had not been working on his own, but mostly as a helpmate to someone of the Bansko master-painters. With Dimiter Sirleshtov he had been working, in the year 1900, on the icon of "The Entry into Jerusalem" in the "Saint Dimiter" church in the village of Padesh. In that same year the two of them had been working also on another icon, dedicated to Saint Great Martyr George, for the same church, and also on the icon of "Saint Dimiter". In the last years of his life he had abandoned the icon-painting and had taken to making chests - for household needs and wedding chests, on which he used to paint various ornaments. Had won the respect of the local population. His decorations are extremely fresh, colourful, and we see everywhere the excellent feeling for ornamentation in that painter. He had died in 1932 in Bansko.

School: Bansko Iconographic School

Dimmensions (cm): 48 / 36 / 2.5

Location

Country: Bulgaria

Province: Blagoevgrad

Village: Padesh

Church: St. Great Martyr Dimiter

Source

Country: Bulgaria

Province: Blagoevgrad

Village: Padesh

Church: St. Great Martyr Dimiter

Description

Painted in the foreground in the center of the icon is Christ, riding a donkey. Two figures, painted under the figures of the apostles, are holding a mantle. To the left of Christ and behind him are the apostles, and painted oh the right-hand side is the gate to Jerusalem with the high priests. Behind Christ is the sycamore tree with Zacchaeus up in it, hacking at a branch. The background behind the figures is an even dark-blue one.

Iconographical technique: Tempera

Base material: Wood

The base is two softwood panels, with two beams. The ground coat is of plaster, laid thinly directly on the panel.

State, restoration traces and comments

No prior restoration has been detected.