April 5, 2026
Putin orders transfer of 2 medieval icons from Tretyakov Gallery to Russian Orthodox Church, patriarch says
Patriarch Kirill said at an April 4 service in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior that President Vladimir Putin had personally ordered the transfer of the Vladimir and Donskaya icons of the Mother of God to the Russian Orthodox Church.
TL;DR
- President Vladimir Putin personally ordered the transfer of the Vladimir and Donskaya icons to the Russian Orthodox Church.
- Patriarch Kirill stated that the church had repeatedly requested the return of these icons, facing obstructions from cultural sphere representatives.
- Kirill thanked President Putin, Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova, and the Tretyakov Gallery staff for facilitating the transfer.
- Both icons, painted in the 12th and late 14th/early 15th centuries respectively, had been held at the Tretyakov Gallery since 1930.
- The Vladimir icon was kept at the Church-Museum of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, while the Donskaya icon was part of the permanent collection.
- Patriarch Kirill called for prayer for the Fatherland, President Putin, and the authorities after the icons' return.
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