Exhibition Archive

Sinai, Byzantium, Russia at the Courtauld

19 October 2000 - 4 February 2001

Sponsored by EFG Bank, European Financial Group
Supported by the Saint Catherine Foundation

St Catherines Monastery stands at the foot of Mount Sinai where Moses received the Ten Commandments, and contains within its walls the site of the Burning Bush. The present church and monastery were built in the sixth century and throughout the subsequent 1500 years the monastic community has maintained continuous prayer, worship and contemplation. It has a magnificent collection of over 2000 Byzantine icons dating from the sixth century onwards.

The icons from St Catherines are spectacular works from the 11th to the 13th centuries, and most of the pieces from St Petersburg were collected on Mount Athos in the 19th century and range in date from the 11th to the 15th centuries.

Included were the main icon of St Catherine of Alexandria with scenes of her martyrdom which was placed over her relics at the Monastery, as well as icons from the great Medieval screens of the church of St Catherine and two which marked special holy sites of Mount Sinai, Moses receiving the Law and Elijah fed by the raven.

Saint Catherine Foundation

The charitable Saint Catherine Foundation supports conservation work at the Monastery of Saint Catherine, Mount Sinai. The major task of conserving the monasterys Library is already underway, in conjunction with a conservation research project developed by the School of Art History and Conservation at the London Institutes Camberwell College of Arts. An estimated £2 million will be needed to re-house and conserve the historic Library collection.

For more information please contact the Saint Catherine Foundation at 14 Cleveland Row, London SW1A 1DP. Tel 020 7396 5420.

UK registered charity 1053138