Saint Ephraim of Nea Makri – Silkscreen Print on Naturally Aged Wood – Mount Athos

Description

Silkscreen Print of Saint Ephraim of Nea Makri on Naturally Aged Wood

An amazing silkscreen print of Saint Ephraim of Nea Makri, one of the “newly revealed” saints, who was born in 1384 in Trikala.

To escape the forced conscription of young boys, he was sent to the Monastery of the Annunciation of the Theotokos on Mount Amomon at the age of just 14. He stayed there until he was 18 as a novice monk, was later tonsured as a monk, and within a few years was ordained a priest. His sacred relics were discovered by Sister Makaria Desypri on January 3, 1950, at the site where the Holy Monastery of Amomon now stands in Nea Makri, Attica.

According to Christian tradition, the Holy Monastery experienced two destructions after the capture of Athens by the Ottomans in 1416. During the first, the saint happened to be praying in a cave on the mountain. The Ottoman army slaughtered the other monks and fathers, whom Saint Ephraim buried upon his return. In 1425, the Turks found him and tortured him with great cruelty for 8.5 months. He was martyred on May 5, 1426, and the tree where he was nailed and took his last breath still stands today.

Two elements make up the unique aesthetic of this icon. The first is the impeccably crafted representation of Saint Ephraim of Nea Makri, and the second is the naturally aged wood used as the base of the icon. The monks, paying attention to even the smallest details, create these icons on pieces of wood that come from the Holy Mountain itself. These woods come from restoration work on cells that had been damaged over time. The monks have processed and preserved them, giving them a new life, this time as the base for these beautiful icons.

Since the icon is handmade and the wood is processed by hand, there may be small variations in the wood, but not in the depiction.

The icon is available upon request.

Dimensions: 19.5 x 26 x 2 cm

Origin: Mount Athos