Saint Nikiforos the Leper – Silkscreen on Naturally Aged Wood – Mount Athos

Description

Silkscreen of Saint Nikiforos the Leper on Naturally Aged Wood

An exquisite silkscreen of Saint Nikiforos the Leper (January 4), who is considered one of the patron saints of the sick.

Saint Nikiforos was a priest from a village in Chania, Crete. Orphaned at a young age, he left his home at 13. By the age of 16, when the symptoms of the disease that plagued him—leprosy—became more evident, he went to Egypt but later sought refuge on the island of Chios in a leprosarium, where Father Anthimos Vagianos (later Saint Anthimos) was the priest. There, he became a monk under the name Nikiforos.

As the disease progressed, Saint Nikiforos lived a strict life of fasting, working in the gardens, and praying through long hours of the night, making prostrations. He also served as the main chanter in the church. Later, he and others were sent to the Anti-Leprosy Station of Saint Barbara in Aigaleo, Athens. At that time, Father Nikiforos was about 67 years old. His body and eyes had been completely altered and deformed by the disease, but a large number of people came to the humble cell of the leprous monk to receive his blessing. Many miracles are attributed to him.

The entire composition respects the age of the Athonite wood and faithfully portrays the Byzantine tradition of Mount Athos.

As the icon is handcrafted and the wood is manually processed, slight variations in the wood may occur, but not in the depiction.

The icon is available upon request.

Dimensions: 25 x 29 x 2.5 cm

Origin: Mount Athos