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Icon: Sts. Boris and Gleb Boris and Gleb, the two most famous figures in Russian hagiography, were also the first two holy martyrs of the early Kievan Church. The younger sons of Prince Vladimir, they were murdered by their half-brother Sviatopolk in 1015 during the war of succession to the Kievan throne that followed Vladimir’s death. This icon has an emblematic quality: the vertical lines of the clothing accentuate the slender, aristocratic canon of the hieratic figures with their small hands and feet. Dressed in traditional princely costume, they each hold a sword and cross evoking their martyrdom, but their faces are strongly individualized. These elements suggest that the icon dates to around 1340, corresponding perhaps to the reconstruction of the Zverin Monastery in Novgorod (which began in 1335).
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