Theotokos of Vladimir Framed Icon

• Solid birch wood, cut and shaped from monastery-grown timber
• Icon drawn from Orthodox Church tradition, hand-finished by our craftsmen
• Sealed with a Museum Wax protective layer for lasting depth and shine
• Set into your choice of Ornate Gold or Walnut and Gold frame
• Available in A5 or A4
• Made to order in our Liverpool workshop, packaged with care and sent to your door

Every icon starts as raw birch, cut and shaped by hand before the image ever touches the wood. The design itself is drawn from Orthodox Church tradition, then brought to life by our craftsmen and parishioners in the workshop. Not stamped out, made. Once the icon is finished, we seal it with a Museum Wax layer for depth and protection, then set it into its frame ourselves before it's wrapped and sent on its way to you.

Among the oldest and most venerated icons within the Russian Orthodox tradition, the Theotokos of Vladimir shows the Christ Child pressed close against His Mother's cheek in the tender type known as Eleousa, meaning ‘of Tenderness.’ Tradition traces the lineage of this icon back to a prototype attributed to Saint Luke the Evangelist, painted, according to that same tradition, during the lifetime of the Mother of God herself. Brought eventually to the city of Vladimir, from which it takes its name, the icon became bound up with the protection and identity of the Russian people across many centuries of their history. Its quiet and intimate composition, mother and child united in an embrace of unguarded love, continues to be regarded as one of the most profound expressions of maternal tenderness within the whole of Christian art.

“But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19)

O Most Holy Theotokos, who didst hold thy Son close in tenderness and in sorrow, hold us also near to thy heart, and bring us, through thy prayers, ever closer to His. Amen.

A meaningful Orthodox gift for baptisms, name days, weddings, and feast celebrations.