Crime-solving techniques may have solved a centuries-old art mystery

Crime-solving techniques applied to an illuminated medieval manuscript in Paris may have solved a centuries-old puzzle – the true identity of a master Byzantine painter who introduced humanity to to the strict sanctity of Orthodox religious art.

A contemporary of Giotto, considered the father of Western painting, the artist commonly known as Manuel Panselinos was equally influential in a completely different tradition that is largely observed in the West.

But nothing is known about his life, and scholars now believe that Panselinos was simply a nickname substituted for the real name of the man for whom it was earned – perhaps Ioannis Astrapas, from the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki.

The art of Byzantium, which decorates churches throughout Greece, Serbia and other Orthodox countries, stands out for the strong formality of long, glorious saints, semi-cubic mountains and Madonnas with eyes.

A work attributed to Panselinos, from the late 13th and early 14th centuries, is considered the best produced in an empire that spanned Europe and Asia and which suffered from the fall of Rome until the capture of the imperial capital Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

Art historians have long suspected that the name – Greek for “full moon” – may have originated as a nickname for a member of the so-called Macedonian School of Painting, based there the Thessaloniki.

Recent research by a Greek monk and linguist has linked “Panselinos” to the Macedonian School painter Astrapas. Now court handwriting expert Christina Sotirakoglou has matched letters on a manuscript tentatively attributed to Astrapas with characters on a church painting in northern Greece, seen long ago as Panselinos' best work.

Father Cosmas Simonopetritis, former administrator of Mount Athos, the semi-autonomous monastic community where the Protato church stands, says that Sotirakoglou's and his own research ” clearly prove” the true identity of Panselinos.

“Panselinos was a real person, and (the name) was just the nickname by which Ioannis Astrapas was known,” he told The Associated Press.

Constantinos Vafiadis, a professor of Byzantine art in Athens who was not involved in the studies, said he found merit in the nickname theory and the Astrapas connection, even though it appeared that more than one painter had ' to undertake the Protato project.

“I agree to send part of the paintings to Ioannis Astrapas,” he said. “But again there is a lot of reason for future research on that person, because other monuments in Mount Athos have not been from the same still time to publish.”

“Panselinos” – a role model for generations of painters – and his contemporaries are associated with the revival of types in Orthodox art that revived forms and techniques inherited from ancient times. Facial expressions were given a deeper humanity, and more attention was paid to proportion and depth of field in composition.

Father Cosmas said that Astrapas was an “extremely talented painter … with great knowledge who combined the ancient classical world with Byzantine Orthodox spirituality.”

“And that … makes his work unique throughout the world,” he said.

Artist signatures were not common at the time, although some have survived from members of the Astrapas family. There is none with “Panselinos.”

The trail began with earlier research linking Astrapas to the artist and scholar who wrote and illustrated the Marcian Codex GR 516, an early 14th-century Greek manuscript text dealing with topics from astronomy to music theory. Among the painted pictures was a full moon.

“For me … that was the main proof,” said Father Cosmas.

With a name found for the hand that created the manuscript, the next step was to examine its style against the inscription on Protato's painting, traditionally associated with “Panselinos.”

“Mrs. Sotirakoglou, who is a handwriting expert, filled that blank,” said Father Cosmas.

There was one problem: women have been banned for over 1,000 years from entering Mount Athos.

“I had to analyze the Protato photos based on photos,” Sotirakoglou, who works as a court consultant on handwriting identification in criminal cases, told the AP.

“(The work) was very difficult, because the writing on the murals is in large letters, and the painters applied their personal handwriting to stick to the traditional form, she said – rather like efforts anonymous letter writers hide theirs. true style. “The Marcian code is written in lowercase letters.”

The first sight came from the Greek letter Phi, the English F.

“It is Phi that stands out, and is similar” in both the manuscript and the Protato painting, she said. “Matching also continued with other letters, T, with its proportions, which are larger, cover the other letters and have a curve, the proportions of the K.”

“But when the Phi was published, the writing code was broken and the job became much easier,” she said.

Father Cosmas said that during his administrative duties on Mount Athos, he attended services at the Protato church every day.

“That's where my desire was born … to explore the mystery surrounding the name and identity of Panselinos,” he said, adding that he believes the artist “is now truly vindicated.” get recognition.”