The Virgin “Axion Esti” – Canvas Painting – Mount Athos

Description

Canvas Painting of the Virgin “Axion Esti”

An exact replica of the original icon, painted on natural fir wood.

The Virgin “Axion Esti” is one of the most famous icons of Mount Athos. It is located in the Church of the Protaton in Karyes and is the patron image of all the monasteries of Mount Athos.

Originally, the “Axion Esti” icon was located in a cell of the Holy Monastery of Pantokrator, in the valley known as “Aden.” On June 11, 980 AD, the elder was away at an all-night vigil in Karyes, leaving only his novice behind. The novice completed his prayer rule as usual in the evening. Suddenly, he hears a knock at the door. He opens it and sees a traveler asking for shelter. The monk continues his prayers until he reaches the 9th Ode: “More Honorable than the Cherubim.” The guest then interrupts and tells him, “First, you must say: ‘Axion estin, as it is truly…'” as the supplement to the hymn of the Theotokos.

The monk, excited, asks the guest to write down the hymn so that he could chant it too. Since there was no ink or paper in the cell, the mysterious visitor carved the hymn with his finger on a stone tablet. He told the novice that this hymn should be chanted by all Orthodox Christians from then on, and then mysteriously disappeared, just as he had appeared.

The Athonite fathers sent the stone tablet to the king and Patriarch Nicholas Chrysoverges, who approved the inclusion of this angelic hymn into the liturgical life of the Church.

The icon before which this hymn was first chanted was moved to the Protaton, where it was established that an annual feast would be held in honor of the Virgin Mary to commemorate this miraculous event.

Canvas Painting – Features

Using the technique of printing on canvas, the iconographer monk employed a copy of a Byzantine icon and created the work with embossed elements. The construction of the image is entirely hand-crafted with an antiquing technique. The canvas is treated with putty to ensure the image’s colors remain unchanged over time.

The icon is available upon request.

Origin: Mount Athos