Icon of the Mother of God and Infant Christ (Virgin Eleousa) — Angelos Akotantos (Cretan, died 1450) — The Cleveland Museum of Art · Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund · CC0. Museum object record ↗

Painting study · Tempera

Icon of the Mother of God and Infant Christ (Virgin Eleousa)c. 1425–50 · Study 2010.154

Angelos Akotantos (Cretan, died 1450)
c. 1425–50

Recorded as tempera and gold on wood, this vertical work measures 70 × 96 cm using the museum’s unframed dimensions. Explore the museum’s context and compare the format with a wall of your choice.

Explore its scale ↓Shop Lei-Kol paintings

Museum collection reference. This work is not offered for sale by Physical Art For Crypto. Museum attribution does not imply a partnership or endorsement.

Context from the museum

This large icon of a tender embrace between the Virgin Mary and Christ likely hung on a Greek Orthodox church’s iconostasis, a screen separating the congregation from the altar-containing sanctuary, which only clergy could enter. A skilled painter of faces and draperies, Angelos Akotantos was among Crete’s most sought-after artists. Based in Byzantium’s artistic center in his hometown of Candia, he painted for imperial clients and beyond. Despite theological differences, Cretan icons of Mary were popular in Ethiopia. In the early 1500s, Emperor Lebna Dengel sent monks Zekre and Pawli to acquire Cretan icons for him. Twenty-nine Cretan icons are still venerated (honored) in Ethiopian churches.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

A detail to notice

This is the only known work by Angelos Akotantos in the United States.

Observation supplied by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected unframed measurement for Icon of the Mother of God and Infant Christ (Virgin Eleousa) is 70 cm wide and 96 cm high, equivalent to approximately 27.6 × 37.8 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 0.73:1. The rectangular bounding area is 0.67 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 23.3% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 115.0 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Icon of the Mother of God and Infant Christ (Virgin Eleousa) in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, tempera and gold on wood, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

Which part of this vertical composition catches your eye first?
Would a 70 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?

Explore physical scale

How large would this format feel on your wall?

Use this museum work’s recorded format as a reference. Adjust a blank wall and optional frame allowance to compare proportions. The museum painting is an educational reference and is not for sale here.

Units

Wall width (cm)

Wall height (cm)

Frame each side (cm)

23.3%of wall width, including allowance

70.0 × 96.0 cmmodeled outside dimensions

Within the entered wall dimensions115.0 cm each side when centered

Calculation: outside width = recorded width + twice your frame allowance. This is a proportion study, not an installation assessment. It excludes furniture, hardware, load capacity, depth and delivery clearance. The display image may include margins absent from the recorded measurement.

Compare formats with the studio collection

These Lei-Kol works have the closest width-to-height ratios in the current catalog. This is a geometry comparison, not a claim of artistic similarity, equivalent value, or association with the museum artist.