Bidspirit auction | Wooden carved kiot frame. Russian

Wooden carved kiot frame. Russian Empire, Russian North (probably the Vologda–Onega area), late 19th – early 20th century. Wood, openwork and relief carving. Dimensions: 35.5 × 46 cm (overall), 15.8 × 22.5 cm (visible opening). Condition: visible signs of use, darkening of the wood, losses and chips to some carved elements, local old reinforcements; the structure is generally sound and the overall decorative effect of the ornament is preserved. Rectangular kiot frame with a pronounced shaped crest, centred on a carved cross in an oval medallion with rays, surrounded by dense openwork ornament in the form of “chains” and hanging elements; along the vertical uprights run bands of repeating heart‑shaped scrolls. The dense, naive yet virtuoso openwork carving is characteristic of folk masters of the Russian North and makes this frame a rare, authentic example of late 19th‑ to early 20th‑century rural Orthodox art.