ABSTRACT
The unpublished icon depicting the Noli Me Tangere (BM 1994,0501.3) at the British Museum (Figs 12.1a and 12.1b),2 is known in the bibliography of postByzantine Cretan studies because of its close similarity to the one at the Saint Catherine’s Monastery at Herakleion,3 signed by the famous Cretan painter of the second half of the sixteenth century, Michael Damaskinos (Fig. 12.2). The differences between the two icons are minor, the most important being their size: measuring approximately 62 x 47 cm the British Museum icon is substantially smaller than the one in Herakleion (109 x 87 cm). Damaskinos’ signature verifies the Cretan roots of the icon at the Saint Catherine’s monastery. For the work kept at the British Museum, such roots are confirmed by the fact that it was purchased at Chania – the capital of the homonymous
1 The authors would like to thank Dr David Buckton, the former curator of icons at the British Museum, and his successor, Mr Chris Entwistle, for permiĴing and facilitating the study of the icon, which forms part of the British Museum icon collection, Department of Prehistory and Europe; Caroline R. Cartwright, Rebecca Stacey, Nigel Meeks, Giovanni Verri and Antony Simpson of the Department of Conservation and Scientific Research for their expert scientific contribution to this work; Prof. Beverly Brown, Prof. Leslie Brubaker, Sherry Doyal, Dr Rembrandt Duits, Catherine HiggiĴ, Dr Loula Kailas, Mr Yanni Petsopoulos, Prof. Dr Vasiliki Tsamakda, and Prof. Maria Vassilaki for their valuable comments and advice; Mrs Panorea Benatou and Mrs Christina Vona for their practical help.
