Abstract: By centering the deesis row and locating it above the Royal Gates, the image of the Savior in Power (Pantocrator) - a Russian version of the image of the Savior in Glory accompanied by the four living Beings - became the semantic and compositional dominant of the Russian high iconostasis and, thus, its main icon. The examination of the meaning and sources of this image is fundamental in solving the issue of the origin and design of the entire high iconostasis as a whole, which, in turn, is one of the key icons in the history and theory of Christian art. It is believed that the earliest icons of the Savior in Power are in the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, in the row of the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir and in the iconostasis of the Trinity Cathedral of the St. Sergius Lavra. Another image of the Savior in Power, considered early, is depicted in a miniature of the "Pereyaslavsky Gospel"; some scholars believe that it is the oldest preserved image of this icon and that it lies at the origins of this iconography. The miniature contains rudiments of more ancient compositions that supposedly are its source. If this is so, then this miniature should be considered one of the most important monuments of Old Russian visual art and deserves our closest attention. This article is focused on this monument and on the analysis of the evidence that supports the claim of it antiquity: the author describes the features of the miniature codex and identifies previously unknown or erroneously interpreted particularities of the miniature's composition of the Savior; additionally, the author introduces new material that is important for solving a number of attribution problems and theoretical issues. The author concludes that the features of the Pereyaslavsky miniature are the result of its later alterations.

Abstract: The article addresses the only study to date that is focused entirely on the iconography of full-figured Deesis and analyzes the theses presented in it.The author's attention is focused mainly on the theses regarding the models and their copies by icon painters; the images revealed through modifications; the extent of their prevalence and relationship of modifications and their “lists”. The author, stating his adherence to the textological research method, analyzes genealogical studies on particular icons and iconographic types. The author examines the conclusions regarding the icons of the iconostasis of the Kremlin Annunciation Cathedral as “the only archetype” for Russian Deesis icons, as well as the simplification of this “archetype” by subsequent icon painters, leading to the appearance of new imagery.The novelty of the proposed approach lies in the collation of icon images using the contours of their drawing, which allows to visually present the discussed images with all their details, as well as to compare a significant number of icons at the same time. As a result of the verification of the theses from the work under review, carried out using extensive additional material (the author considered more than one and a half hundred Deesis iconostases and their fragments), the following conclusions were made:1) the icons of the Annunciation Cathedral were not the iconographical source of Russian Deesis icons;2) in Russian icons there is no simplification of the drawing compared with the icons of the Annunciation iconostasis;3) the author did not observe any universal or compulsory copying;4) in some cases perhaps several models were used at the same time, which makes Deesis icons almost closed for genealogical research;5) the number and variety of image versions that are part of the Deesis far exceed those described in the literature.