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Arts & Communication Altar “Passion of Christ” in Lviv

symbolizes the Kingdom of Heaven, where the Sacrament 2. Materials and methods
of Eucharist is performed. Side altars were dedicated to
saints or Gospel events. These altars were predominantly In the scientific study of the alabaster altar on the
funded by wealthy patrons, who often had significant theme “The Passion of Christ,” various general scientific
influence over their artistic solutions. (empirical methods like observation, visual examination,
and description; and theoretical methods such as analysis,
The relevance of the publication is driven by the need systematization, comparison, and generalization)
for research and thorough study of the style, architectonics, and specialized professional research methods (such
and artistic expression methods of the unique Renaissance as morphological [stylistic] analysis, proportional
alabaster altar of the Passion of Christ in Lviv, preserved analysis method, field examination method, and photo
to this day in its authentic form. The aim of the article is documentation method) were employed.
to reveal the origin history of the alabaster altar of the
Passion of Christ, from the now-destroyed Chapel of the 2.1. Method visual examination
Holy Cross, Latin Cathedral, analyze the features of its The initial stage of the research involved a visual examination
compositional artistic and plastic solutions, and determine of the unique alabaster altar, allowing for the identification
its value and place in Ukraine’s cultural heritage. of relevant problems for systematic investigation.
A significant contribution to the study of the During the visual inspection, it was determined what
alabaster altar of the Passion of Christ can be attributed materials the altar was made of. The materials had their
to the works of both Ukrainian and international art specific properties and were therefore important in the
historians, who have examined this artwork in the manufacture of sacred works of art. It was established that
context of architectural and artistic significance. In the the altar structure was made of black marble. The bas-relief
context of the evolution of Lviv sculpture in the second compositions of the Passion of Christ, the Resurrection of
half of the 16 – 17 centuries, the alabaster altar of Christ, and the coats of arms of the founders, which are
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the Passion of Christ was examined in the dissertation placed in the altar structure, are made of light alabaster
of V.F. Lyubchenko and highlighted in the monograph with a yellow tint. A unique sacred work of art was created
“Lviv Sculpture of the 16 – 17 centuries” 1(pp.54-67) V. thanks to the balanced combination of black marble and
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Lozinski in his monographic work “Lviv Art in the 16 – light alabaster in the altar of the Passion of Christ.
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17 centuries” (1898) provided an art analysis of the During the examination, attention was also focused on
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family adoration scene from the altar of the Passion of the form, structure, and composition of the altar. Based on
Christ. 2(pp.134-135),3(p.55) V. Vereshchagin, in his essay “Old a visual inspection, the state of preservation of the studied
Lviv” (1915), analyzing notable Lviv church founders, work of art and the peculiarities of the restoration were
examined the family adoration at the Holy Sepulcher from determined.
the altar of the Passion of Christ. 4(p.45,p.58) J.B. Cholodecki,
researching the features of the Trinitarian Order and the 2.2. Мethod of analysis of literary sources
Church of St. Nicholas, to which the altar of the Passion Analysis of literary sources helped ascertain the degree of
of Christ was transferred, noted the foundation date prior research on the object. The literature analysis showed
of the altar and its origins. 5(pp.60-77) Polish art researcher that researchers focused their attention on certain specific
M. Gedarowicz, studying altarpiece compositions with aspects that formed the theoretical basis for the theory
donor figures, analyzed the Scholz-Wolfowicz Altar of Ukrainian art of the Renaissance. As the basis of the
in his work “Studies of Late Renaissance Art Culture analysis of the altar of the Passion of Christ, the author
in Poland.” 6(p.1962) Y. Nelgovskyi, analyzing the plastic chose the most fundamental works on the topic of the
decoration of 16 – 17 -century sculptures, emphasized study. These sources became the basis for a comprehensive
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the appearance of donors’ family in prayer kneeling in study of the altar. The vast majority of works describe the
the altar scene “Laying in the Tomb.” 7(p.137) A. Legedza, stylistics of Lviv altars, including the altar of the Passion
investigating the iconographic and figuratively-plastic of Christ. The most thorough study was conducted by
characteristics of founder portraits in Lviv sculpture in V.F. Lyubchenko, who examined the altar in the context
the 16 – 17 centuries, analyzed the iconography of of the evolution of Lviv plastic arts in the second half of
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kneeling scenes of patrician family members in the altar the 16 and 17 centuries. The analysis of the main studies
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of the Passion of Christ, placed at the corners of the and publications shows that the Lviv altars with relief
altar’s predella. 8(pp.51-62) O. Fomina, studying restoration compositions were analyzed in passing with the absence of
methods of alabaster sculptures in Ukraine, highlighted a special art historical study. It was determined that there
the challenges of their restoration. 9(pp.643-652) is no separate complex work that would be devoted to the

Volume 3 Issue 3 (2025) 2 doi: 10.36922/ac.4738