Agioi Raphael Nikolaos & Peace – Excavated Lithography – Mount Athos

Description

Excavated Lithography with Saints Raphael Nikolaos & Peace.

Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene are included in the choir of Neophaned Saints and indeed those who were martyred almost immediately after the fall of Constantinople.

We know little about their lives. The first information about the existence of the Saints is reported in a miraculous and revelatory way from the year 1959 AD. From an excavation made in Thermi of Lesvos, after continuous visions, the tomb of the Holy Hieromartyr Raphael, who was martyred together with the Holy Holy Martyr Nikolaos and Saint Irene, was discovered.

It is known that before becoming a clergyman, Saint Raphael had a career in the Byzantine army and even reached a great rank. After his ordination as a monk, he was ordained a presbyter, but he was also honored with the office of archimandrite and protosygello.A few years before the fall of Constantinople, the Saint found himself living as a monk somewhere in Macedonia with the monk Nikolaos as a deacon.

As soon as Constantinople fell into the hands of the Turks, the fear of general persecutions against the Christians was the reason for Saint Raphael to take refuge with other monks, in the old monastery of Genesios of the Theotokos on Karyes hill, near the village of Thermi in Mytilene, where he was elected abbot.

In 1463 AD Lesvos fell into the hands of the Turks, and after a raid on the monastery, they arrested Agios Raphael and Agios Nikolaos, on Maundy Thursday of the same year. Cruel and merciless torture followed and Saint Raphael was martyred by slaughter in a very cruel way. They dragged him violently by pulling his hair and beard, hung him from a tree, beat him brutally, pierced him with their weapons of war, after having first ignited them in a strong fire, and finally slaughtered him by sawing his mouth.

Agios Nikolaos died after torture, from a heart attack, tied to a tree.

Together with the Saints, twelve-year-old Irene, daughter of Vasilios, provost of Thermi, was also martyred. After cutting off one of her hands, the pagans put her in a jar and burned her in front of her parents.

With them, the father of Agia Irini, Vasilios, his wife Maria, their five-year-old child Raphael, their niece Eleni, the teacher Theodoros and the doctor Alexandros, whose bones were found near the graves, were also martyrs. of Saints.

Their martyrdom took place on Tuesday of Diakainisimo, April 9 of the year 1463 AD

After miraculous indications of Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene, in visions of pious residents of the area, the existence of their remains became known and the places where their graves were located were indicated.

Their feast day is two days after Easter, that is, the Tuesday of Diakainisimo or Lambrotrite.

Excavated Lithography: Characteristics

The work is crafted entirely by hand, without machines, in hollowed out natural wood. It is the work of the iconographer Athanasios, a student of the Athonias Ecclesiastical Academy, who remains faithful to Byzantine art as he was taught on Mount Athos. His works are covered with pure beeswax so that they remain unchanged over time.

In this particular image, the hagiographer monk used the lithography technique, creating a work of unique beauty. Specifically, using a lithographed copy of Byzantine art, the monk crafted this work following the traditional method of artificial aging, as taught in the iconography workshops of the State of Mount Athos.
In fact, the artificial aging of the iconography is done by hand, a process to which the monks of Mount Athos give special importance.

Dimensions: 17X25

As the image is handmade and the wood processing is done entirely by hand, there may be slight variations in the dimensions of each image.

Theimage is available upon request.

Origin: Mount Athos