A series of postage stamps is dedicated to the return of gateway holy pictures to the passage towers of the Moscow Kremlin.
In Soviet times, all the icons were considered irretrievably lost, but in 2007, the Foundation of Apostle Andrew the First-Called raised a concern of their return. The archival research that followed made it possible to get a sufficiently comprehensive idea of the historical appearance of the icons.
Field studies revealed that the images of Christ the Savior on the Spasskaya Tower and of St. Nicholas on the Nikolskaya Tower were gingerly covered with a metal mesh with a coating material applied over it.
In 2010, the ancient holy pictures of Christ the Savior on the Spasskaya Tower and of Saint Nicholas on the Nikolskaya Tower were restored and unveiled.
In 2023, after meticulous research work, seven more irretrievably lost images were recreated with the scientific restoration method. That was a unique project; its successful implementation symbolizes the continuation of the centuries-old historical succession.
The postage stamps provide images of Icons of the Savior of Smolensk (Spasskaya Tower), of Christ Not Made by Hand and the Blessed Virgin Mary (Spasskaya Tower) and of St. Nikolas of Mozhaisk (Nikolskaya Tower).
| Paper |
Printing method |
Perforation |
Format of the stamp |
Edition |
| Chalk surfaced |
Offset + bronzed paste + security system |
Frame 11¾:12 |
37 × 50 mm |
36 thousand stamps |