Ukrainian baroque iconostasis and liturgical structuring of the monastery space

Abstract

Baroque iconostases of Ukraine with thematic iconographies have repeatedly come to the attention of researchers. This refers to iconostases that did not contain the composition Deesis and other images necessary for the year-round cycle of divine services. Instead of the traditional complex of icons, such iconostases contained images that fully covered the theme of the consecration of the altar. The preserved monuments are described in sufficient detail, but the motives and meanings of implementing such programmes have not yet been convincingly explained. The study offers a new look at the reasons for the appearance and symbolic meaning of thematic iconographic programmes of Ukrainian iconostases of the Baroque era. The meaning of introducing edited iconographic programmes is reconstructed using the hierotopic method. Its application identified that the development of thematic iconographies was based on a spatial iconographic concept in which the programmes of several iconostases interacted. The study showed that thematic iconographies were common in the iconostases of side chapels, while the main iconostasis contained all the necessary complex of images, including the Deesis composition. It is established that the introduction of thematic iconography for the main iconostasis was possible only for the monastery church, which in this case was understood as a chapel relative to the central iconostasis of the cathedral church of the monastery. In this carefully designed image system, the icon complexes of the iconostases of side altars and other monastic churches interacted with the iconographic programme of the iconostasis of the main altar in real space. The implementation of such a project expanded the liturgical space of the main church, covering the monastery complex. Therewith, symbolic meanings associated with the image of the temple in the Christian tradition were transferred to the monastery. The proposed reconstruction explains the lack of practice of creating thematic iconographies for the iconostases of the main altars in parish churches