Saint Anthony – Lithograph – Mount Athos

Description

Saint Anthony the Great: Life

Saint Anthony was born in 251 AD in Upper Egypt to wealthy and pious parents, whom he lost at a young age. From childhood, he was self-sufficient and showed a particular zeal for the worship life of the Church. After the death of his parents and after taking care of his younger sister, he distributed his belongings to the poor and withdrew to a cave in the desert. There, he lived an ascetic life for 25 years.

During his ascetic life, Saint Anthony never changed his clothing, nor did he wash his body. He taught his disciples to refrain from worldly goods, without thinking that they were missing something important. He also taught them to consider nothing superior to the love of Christ.

Saint Anthony passed away in 356 AD at the age of 105, in perfect physical and spiritual health. Just before his death, he gave his only possessions, a tunic and two sheepskins, to his two closest disciples, Saint Athanasius the Great and Serapion.

One of Saint Anthony’s final wishes was that the place of his burial remain secret. However, the monks who lived near him claimed to have the sacred relic of the saint. Under Emperor Justinian, in 561 AD, the relic of Saint Anthony was transferred to the church of Saint John the Baptist in Alexandria. From there, in 635, it was moved to Constantinople. In the 11th century, a French nobleman named Joscelin took the holy relics of Saint Anthony and transferred them to the Abbey of Saint Anthony in the town of Saint-Antoine in southeastern France, where they remain today.

Saint Anthony subdued his passions, reaching the highest limits of asceticism. His soul could depart from his body while still alive. He became the model for ascetics and is considered the founder of monastic life in the East. The Church has proclaimed him as the Great and commemorates his memory on January 17th.

Lithograph of Saint Anthony

Using a lithographed copy of Byzantine art, the gifted iconographer Nektarios Nastos created this work following the traditional method of artificial aging, as he was taught at Mount Athos. In the four corners, the image is decorated with a gold finish, between the engravings of the artificial aging.

Origin: Mount Athos