This volume features many carved wooden sculptures of saints from 14th- to 20th-century Russia, which until now have been largely unknown to the western public. Officially banned by a proclamation of Peter I, they have nevertheless always been an important part of Russian religious devotion. The sculptures are grouped stylistically into two major groups: early ones are characterized by iconically transcendent austerity, while later ones refl ect western infl uences in anatomical features and gestures. German text.