Splendour and glory

From 19 March to 16 September Splendour and Glory will provide the first overview in the Netherlands of the time-honoured spiritual and artistic traditions of the Russian Orthodox Church. More than 300 religious artefacts - icons, fresco fragments, robes, paintings, historical books and gold and silver objects associated with Christian worship - form the tangible evidence of this rich and enduring sacred institution. Themes in the exhibition include the Church's Byzantine origins and tradition, ecclesiastical feast days with Pascha (Easter) as the high point of the religious calendar, and the tsars and their 'private' church. On display for the first time are an imposing iconostasis, exceptional fourteenth-century frescoes from Pskov and a wealth of magnificent icons from the Hermitage St Petersburg and other renowned Russian collections.