Wooden icons that came to Istanbul Ayasofya Museum from Cossack's churches at Balikesir-Manyas region

Wooden icons are panels that are made for prayers, representing holy persons and events. These panels are accepted starting from the early period of Christianity and momentously after the Iconoclast Period (726-843) and have a religious teaching function. Unlike the nobility of religious architecture in the early period in Byzantine Art, icons are symbolic objects used in liturgy. Importance was given to the art of icon after the Iconoclast Period, and the spiritual side of Byzantine painting was revealed by using various materials and with the support of intellectual surroundings of religious descriptions. Byzantine painting has affected both Orthodox countries and the West, especially Italy. In the Palaiologos Period, there were depictions that made the effect of debt apperent in the art of painting, and mobility was observed in the figures. The making of icons continued in the post-Byzantine period. With the acceptance of Christianity in Russia in the 10th century, icons also began to be accepted in this period with the influence of Byzantine Art. Russian icon paintings lived their golden age from the end of the 14th century to the middle of the 16th century. Icon art, which has been influenced by the West since the end of the 17th century, continued this artistic view in the 18th century. In the 19th century, icon art synthesized its own culture and different cultures in a creative development. The Don Cossacks living in Manyas-Kocagöl were members of "Old Believers" denomination. They took refuge in the Ottoman Empire in 1778 and lived in this region until 1962. The Cossacks brought their icons with them and worshiped in their churches and houses. In 1962, some went to the United States, some went to Russia, and the icons remained in churches. The icons remaining in the church were brought to the Istanbul Ayasofya Museum and were preserved there. Within the framework of the project that started in 2014, our work on this icon group started. The icon group subject to our study were introduced by cataloging and inscriptions were examined. As a result of the examinations and researches, iconostasis restitution proposal was made and the icons within the scope of our thesis were compared with the Russian icons made in different periods. Specific part of it has been dated.