Dimensions: 5.5L X 1.4W X 7.4H in/ 14L X 3.5W X 19H cm

Material: Olive Wood

The Holy Virgin Panagia Hodegetria icon is hand carved in bas relief art from one solid piece olive wood and mahogany background. This magnificent piece of iconography art depicts the Virgin Mary presenting her son on her left arm to the viewer and with her hand she is gesturing towards him, pointing to Christ as ‘The Way’. Christ, on the other hand, has his right hand raised in a gesture of blessing with the index and middle fingers joined (to refer to the two natures of Christ) and his thumb locks over the other fingers (to signify the Holy Trinity). The original prototype is said to have been written by the Apostle Luke and kept in Constantinople. According to one legend, the icon received its name by a miracle of the Holy Virgin. The Mother of God ‘appeared’ to two blind people and taking them by the hand, she guided them to the famous monastery and sanctuary of the Hodegetria where she restored their vision. Built by Michael III (842-867), this sanctuary was called the Church of the Guides because the army chiefs used to pray before this icon before they would leave for their campaigns. Since that time, the blind and all who suffer eye disorders would visit this church to wash their eyes so that they could be healed. This is one of the legends that has given this icon of the Mother of God the Hodegetria a privileged place in not just the Eastern Orthodox church but also the Western world.

Estimated shipping time: 3 - 5 business days. Your order's processing time is the estimated number of days that it will take for your order to be prepared for shipment.