On the origins of iconographic method: artistic and scientific heritage of Russian cultural historians of the early 20th century

Abstract

The article considers the contribution of the early 20th century Russian historians V.K. Malmberg, D.V. Ainalov, P.M. Bicilli to the development of iconographic and synthetic method. It is proven that the crucial role in the formation of the historians’ interest in art and culture had been played by their artistic abilities, discovered in the early childhood. As an argumentation of this version, the article draws on the little-known iconographic heritage of historians. Even at the beginning of the 20th century, Russian historians intuitively moved towards developing a new synthetic methodology to significantly enrich the iconographic method, thanks to a special ability to "look at" works of art, as well as a broad understanding of the processes of artistic culture development. This approach led Russian scholars to important discoveries in the field of Medieval and Renaissance cultural history.