Virgin Mary Axion Esti – Serigraph on Naturally Aged Wood – Mount Athos

Description

The main feature of this icon is that it is set on naturally aged wood from within Mount Athos.

This is an icon in the Axion Esti iconographic type on naturally aged wood, crafted in the Russian style. The Most Holy Theotokos holds Jesus in her right arm. Christ’s hand is placed under the Theotokos’s mantle, symbolizing the dependence of Christ’s human nature on His Mother. Christ holds a scroll in His right hand, bearing the prophecy of Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me…” (Isaiah 61:1).

Icons like this were used against heretics to iconographically declare and express the Orthodox Church’s doctrine on the incarnation of the Word of God.

One of the most important icons in Mount Athos is here rendered as a serigraph on natural wood that was aged in the garden of the Virgin. To preserve and repurpose this wood, the monks employed techniques known to them from the conservation of old iconostases in the churches. The cracks in the wood, like carvings by an artist, have been preserved intact to testify to the wood’s previous use in a cell that was recently renovated. The serigraph was carefully placed and artificially aged to match the age and texture of the wood that houses it. The halos of Christ and the Virgin Mary were specially crafted with a raised crown and floral decoration.

The icon is unique and is available exclusively from “Agioritiki Kleronomia”.

The icon is available upon request.

Dimensions: 24 x 28 x 2