By The Moscow Times | Created at 2026-09-14 12:55:15 | Updated at 2026-09-14 14:01:17
1 hour ago
Andrei Rublev’s 15th-century masterpiece “Trinity,” one of Russia’s most sacred icons, has been removed from public view following a climate control failure at the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius outside Moscow, the news outlet RBC reported Monday, citing a source in the Russian Orthodox Church and an art conservator.
President Vladimir Putin ordered the icon to be transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church in 2023, defying warnings from art experts at the Tretyakov Gallery — where it had been housed since 1929 — who cautioned that relocating the fragile relic could cause irreversible damage.
The Church confirmed on Sunday that the icon was taken out of its specialized climate-controlled display case into a Tretyakov-compliant inspection room on the monastery grounds for a “routine inspection” of its condition.
“The icon will continue to be studied and treated in the Lavra’s restoration workshops, while the display case is being repaired,” art historian Ksenia Korobeynikova wrote on Telegram.
The exiled news outlet Echo, citing an anonymous source, reported Saturday that the sealed protective glass case housing the “Trinity” broke some time ago, leaving internal humidity levels at around 80%, which is above the safe range of 50-55%.
A specialized technician flown in from Germany reportedly repaired the case, but the unit failed again shortly after their departure.
Museum experts have said that the high humidity causes the antique wood that the “Trinity” was painted on to swell and warp.
“The icon is curling up into a tube,” Echo quoted its source as saying.
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