Description

Virgin of the Seven Sorrows: The History of the Icon

In this most unusual icon, the Virgin appears with her heart pierced by seven swords. In the more common iconographic type, we see four swords to her left and three to her right.

Because Catholics have adopted the veneration of the “heart of the Theotokos,” many consider the Virgin of the Seven Sorrows to be of Catholic origin. In reality, however, the icon is related to the prophecy of Saint Simeon the Righteous, as recorded by the Evangelist Luke: “and a sword will pierce your own soul also…” (Luke 2:35).

This passage refers to the pain the Virgin would feel at the moment of separation from her beloved Son when He would be led to His crucifixion before her eyes.

The Virgin of the Seven Sorrows is also known as “the prophecy of the Righteous Simeon.” It is commemorated by the Church on August 13.

Antiqued Lithograph: Characteristics

This particular image was created using the lithography technique, which is taught in the iconography workshops of Mount Athos and is also used by several monks to create exceptional works of art. In this case, the monk used a lithographed copy of Byzantine art and completed this work following the traditional method of artificial aging. The lithography technique in iconography is essentially a printing technique.

Origin: Mount Athos