Tsar Ivan the Terrible Admiring Vasilisa Melentieva

Sedov, G. S.

1836, Moscow - 1884, Moscow

Tsar Ivan the Terrible Admiring Vasilisa Melentieva

1875

oil on canvas. 137 х 172
Ж-4402
Пост. в 1897 из ИАХ

Period Late 19th century
CategoryHistory Painting
Keywords The Epoch of Ivan the Terrible (1533-1584) | The Rulers of the Russian Empire | male costume | головные уборы | female costume | Furniture
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Vasilisa Melentieva was the sixth wife of Ivan the Terrible, taken by him as a concubine without any wedding ceremony. Suspected of infidelity, she was forcibly confined to a nunnery in 1577. Sedov''s painting is probably based more on Alexander Ostrovsky''s drama "Vasilisa Melentieva" than on historical fact. According to the writer, Ivan found out about Vasilisa''s feelings for Prince Devyatlov when she called out his name in her sleep. Sedov depicts Tsar Ivan gazing ardently at his sleeping wife, who is about to let slip the name of her lover. The treatment of Russian history as dramatic events, including the personal lives of the tsars and those around them, was a distinguishing characteristic of Russian art of this era.

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