SERAFIMO-DIVEEVSKAYA ICON OF GOD'S MOTHER "EMPASSION" Print

The presented icon is a continuation of my work in the series "Carved Wood and Glass Icons" The icon I presented is made of walnut, the face is made of pear, the background is made of stained glass. In the Orthodox Church, several types of icons of the Virgin "Tenderness" (in the Greek tradition - "Eleusa") are accepted for veneration. Eleusa (Greek Ελεούσα - gracious from έλεος - compassion, sympathy) is one of the main types of depiction of the Mother of God in Russian iconography. On them the Blessed Virgin Mary is usually depicted waist-deep and holds the baby - the Savior - in her arms and leans with tenderness towards her Divine Son. The seraphim-Diveyevo icon “Tenderness” differs from the rest - on it the Mother of God is depicted alone. An interesting fact is that the iconographic type of this icon is characteristic of Western Christianity rather than the Eastern tradition of writing. According to iconography, it goes back to the Ostrobramsky icon of the Mother of God revered in Lithuania and western Russia, which differs from it in the absence of western attributes - a moon sickle below and stars around the halo. The Blessed Virgin Mary is depicted here at a young age, at that moment of Her life, when the Archangel Gabriel announced the Good News about the incarnation of the Son of God. The face of the Holy Virgin Mary is thoughtful, her arms are folded across her chest crosswise, her gaze is down, her eyes are half closed, and her whole appearance conveys a state of deep humility and love. Above his head there is an inscription of words from an akathist: “Rejoice, Bride is not shy!” This image does not belong to the type of icon painting "Eleusa", however, bears the identical name.