Score icons in silver oklad. Evaluation of old icons on photos

Ancient Orthodox icons are of great interest to collectors all over the world. This is not only a matter of aesthetic and spiritual pleasure. Ancient icons are a win-win investment. As a special kind of antiques, they are highly valued in the market, and their cost increases every year.

How icons are estimated

The evaluation of icons is based on several criteria. First of all, the work is attributed. Determines the time of writing the image, its territorial origin and, if possible, authorship. The latter is very difficult to establish in the case of iconography. Since most of the images were created by anonymous masters, it is often possible to speak only about a particular workshop or school.

Also, the evaluation of ancient icons takes into account the safety of the object, the size, the presence of salary, the presence of additional marks in the form of samples, stamps, inscriptions that do not belong to the iconographic canon. Technology of execution and material, in particular, the use of precious stones and metals are taken into account.

What can I learn about an icon from a photo?

It is difficult for the non-specialist to determine the value and cost of a sacred object independently. It is best to contact the experts and get their professional opinion. Evaluation of the old icons on the photos is an excellent alternative for owners to obtain a preliminary expert opinion without exposing a rare monument to the risks of transportation. When referring to specialists in this way, you can find out the degree of artistic or historical value of the work and its approximate market value. However, do not forget that the expert can give a definitive conclusion only on the basis of a detailed study of the original.

Value and cost

Many lovers of antiquity confuse such concepts as artistic or historical value and the market value of the work of art. Evaluation of the icon for sale, of course, takes into account its artistic or historical significance. However, this is not the only criterion that will determine its final value in the antiques market.

What is the market price of the icon

The market of works of art dictates its rules when forming the price of antiquarian things. Evaluation of icons as a work of art and as a subject of sale and purchase are two different types of evaluation. It is not uncommon for a situation where the work of a high artistic level goes literally for pennies, while a small thing that does not represent a particular interest from the point of view of art is sold for fabulous money.

The market value of the icon consists of many factors. Artistic value is only one of them, and not always determining. So, the price of the icon is influenced by such factors as age, skill level (artistic value), size, condition, quality of restoration, availability of salary and its material, and also the icon's membership. The latter is an important factor that directly affects the cost.

From the point of view of the market, icons belonging to once famous personalities, famous monasteries, marked in literature and manifested in significant historical events, are valued higher than those that were kept in simple families or were parish church property.

Often, it is the icon's identity, its personal history, which is the determining criterion in the valuation.

If restoration is necessary

Evaluation and restoration of icons is made after agreeing all the nuances with the customer. There are several types of restoration work. They differ in their tasks and degree of intervention in the state of the original.

The most commonly produced is the so-called antique or commercial restoration. Its goal is to return to the object its original appearance. In this case, the restoration work affects all layers of the icon. The lost parts of the base are restored, the paint layer is cleaned and supplemented, the gilding is renewed. All this is fixed with a protective coating.

After a commercial restoration, the output is "like new". This type of restoration work is extremely popular, as the icon thus restored increases in price. However, inept restoration, technological mistakes, unjustified interference in the paint layer or gesso can significantly reduce the cost.

Unlike commercial restoration, the museum, on the contrary, is aimed at preserving and preserving the monument in the form in which it is located. Its purpose is to stop the destruction and preserve the original state of the icon. In this case, restoration work involves strengthening the board, tinting gesso, partial restoration of the picturesque layer, where possible, and the subsequent preservation of the image. Very rarely restorers interfere in the layers of the substrate, trying not to touch them unnecessarily.

Museum restoration is applied to particularly valuable works of art, high artistic and historical significance.

Icons and salaries

Icons of the 18th - 19th centuries in massive salaries of expensive metals are of great value today. Many of them are rare and cost a lot of money. Often the salaries themselves are a work of arts and crafts and a collector's item.

The evaluation of icons in a silver salary is made by the same criteria as without it. The presence of a salary, as a rule, raises the cost of an icon. However, its very presence does not automatically make any icon expensive, even if the salary is made of silver.

Often, in the examination, different categories are distinguished: the cost of the icon and the cost of the salary. With an equal value for the two icons according to the other criteria, the one that preserves the salary is more expensive and, naturally, the price of silver will rise, but not necessarily much higher. However, another option is possible, when the icon is not remarkable for its qualities, and its price is basically only the cost of a salary from expensive metal.