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It’s icon week on @byzanqueen! Every day this week, I’ll post 1+ icon breakdowns. DM me if you have any requests.
Studying icons has really deepened my faith and prayer life, allowing me to better meditate on the mysteries of our great and awesome God. I hope this helps you too.
Studying icons has really deepened my faith and prayer life, allowing me to better meditate on the mysteries of our great and awesome God. I hope this helps you too.
First up, the icon of the Annunciation, otherwise known in the Byzantine rite as the Annunciation of the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary.
Here are some versions of the icon.
Here are some versions of the icon.
Beginning with the Virgin, we see that she is holding yarn. She is holding the (red, purple) yarn to show that she is spinning the veil of the Temple of Jerusalem, the one torn in two when Jesus dies.
Mary is the Temple Virgin, and here she is shown spinning the thread for the veil at the Incarnation that would be torn at her Son’s death (Luke 23:45). It’s a kind of a prophecy, and a play on the ancient idea of life and death being like a thread spun and then cut.
(Interestingly, in earlier Western art, Mary’s adolescence is depicted in the Temple of Jerusalem, spinning thread accompanied by the Fates, who, in ancient mythology, controlled the thread of life. The woman standing on the left of this Guido Reni piece is one of the Fates.)
(The depictions of Mary spinning yarn, from the apocryphal Pseudo-Matthew, fell out of favor in the West around the 13th century, and began to be replaced with Mary with a book or lectern, to show Mary as a theologian instead, reading ancient Hebrew prophecies about her son.)
(However, the spinning Virgin is the older interpretation. Just for fun, I am including the Ravenna Sarcophagus, which includes an engraved depiction of the Annunciation with a huge basket of wool between Mary and the Archangel Gabriel. This dates back to the fourth century.)
Note also about Mary some characteristics that are repeated in many icons. Here, she is elevated: Mary is never directly on the surface beneath her. She is always on an elevated stand or, in the case of this icon, an elevated seat. This is because she is pure, the Mother of God.
She is also dressed in purple or red. This is meant to indicate Tyrian purple, a status symbol of sorts. Her shoes are also almost always Byzantium red. Both shades were from pigments that were expensive and hard to come by, and therefore reserved for royalty.
The history of Marian blue actually also comes from Tyrian purple. The Phoenician dyemakers who made the purple also made a blue which came to be known as royal blue. All three colors are meant for royalty, indicating again the greatness and holiness of the Mother of God.
(You might remember that Pope Benedict wore red shoes. This was an intentional nod to the Byzantine custom of royalty wearing red shoes.) (Actually most Popes did this but Pope Benedict took the most flack for it. Rude.)
(Jesus is often depicted in red and Mary in blue. Blue doesn’t really occur naturally so it indicates someone or something special. Red is the color of blood and martyrdom.
Might mess around one day and do a whole thread on the history of colors in sacred art.)
Might mess around one day and do a whole thread on the history of colors in sacred art.)
Another characteristic seen in all icons featuring Mary are the three stars on her clothes. These represent that she is ever-Virgin, before, during, and after the birth of Jesus Christ.
Byzantine icons also never show Mary’s hair but, historically, it’s possible her hair would have likely been uncovered, which was the norm for young virgins dedicated to the Temple (we know she was dedicated to it from the apocryphal Protoevangelium of James).
Mary’s hand is up, which is meant to express her obedience and also her consent. Three rays shine on her, representative of the Trinity. You can see a dove in some of the depictions, which is of course the Holy Spirit coming upon her, and sometimes even God Himself or a crown.
Finally, a note on Archangel Gabriel. He is depicted with this feet like that to show he’s running or flying to deliver this good news. The staff in his left hand is the symbol of a messenger.
So, next up is the Holy Visitation, where Mary goes to visit Elizabeth. Here are some examples of this icon.
Instantly, based on what I taught you with the first icon, you know which one is Mary—she’s the one with the three stars on her cloak, and the red shoes of royalty.
This is a very simple icon. It shows Mary and Elizabeth embracing as Mary greets her in the house of Zechariah.
Some depictions have the women apart. Here, both wear red shoes but you can tell which is Elizabeth by the baby superimposed in her womb—the “wild” hair of the baby on the left indicates John the Baptist, prefiguring the kind of bedhead you get from living in the wilderness lol.
(In this icon of the Family of John the Baptist, note that John is holding a scroll, like Jesus often does in most Theotokos icons. For Jesus, it’s meant to represent holding the knowledge of the world even as a child. For John, it represents his being the Forerunner to that.)
(We’ll talk more about John being the Forerunner when we discuss his nativity.)
You’ll note all the icons have the women’s cloaks kind of in disarray, flapping in the wind. This is meant to illustrate the urgency with which Mary goes to see Elizabeth. “Mary arose and went with haste”.
Finally, we can focus on the babies shown in each woman’s womb. The icon I posted two tweets up uses a rather modern kind of superimposed, transparent technique. It’s hard to see, and clearly is an icon writer’s quirk rather than a traditional Byzantine technique.
More traditionally, both Jesus and John the Baptist are depicted as not-very-baby-looking babies in mandorla-esque circles.
(A mandorla, from the Italian word for almond, is an often almond-shaped (sometimes it is in other shapes) figure that surrounds Jesus when He is in His glory. We’ll return to this when we talk about the Transfiguration, the Resurrection and the Ascension.)
So, it’s not quite a mandorla since John the Baptist has one too but it’s a shape to indicate the womb. As I said above, these babies don’t look like babies, which is common in iconography.
The most common version of this icon has Jesus bestowing a blessing upon John the Baptist, who worships Him and bows even in the womb.
Some other versions have Jesus spelling out IC XC with His fingers, with John the Baptist leaping. “And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb.”
Before moving onto the next icon tomorrow, I wanted to include some rarer depictions of Mary pregnant. Like in the icons of the Visitation, Mary’s pregnancy is shown with a mandorla-like circle to illustrate her womb.
However, and this is kind of cool, some icon writers break with tradition and show an actual pregnant belly. Here are two such examples, along with a Coptic (not Byzantine) icon of the Visitation showing both Mary and Elizabeth as visibly pregnant (with Elizabeth further along).
So, onto the icon of the Nativity according to the Flesh of Our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ.
Here are some versions of the icon.
Here are some versions of the icon.
Let’s start with Jesus. Notice He is wrapped in shroud-like swaddling clothes. For reference, compare His clothes to the shroud in the icons of His death and resurrection, and how the manger is exactly like the coffin. In fact, where He is born and buried in icon are caves.
This is to underline the important Womb to Tomb significance of the Incarnation: what does it matter that God became man and was born as a baby if He did not also have His saving death? (1 Corinthians 15) The Resurrection is basically a second birth.
What’s more, the womb and tomb are similar to also make the point that, as Jesus was born without breaking the seal of Mary’s virginity, so too did He resurrect without breaking the seal of His tomb.
Notice also that Jesus is in the dark—this is to show that finally the Light has come to the world.
The animals—an ox and a donkey—as well as serve to highlight the poverty and humility that God accepted even in His birth, in addition to referencing Isaiah 1:3.
The animals—an ox and a donkey—as well as serve to highlight the poverty and humility that God accepted even in His birth, in addition to referencing Isaiah 1:3.
Let’s focus on Mary now. In some newer icons, she is kneeling before her Son, her God, and her cloak still has the three stars indicating her ever-virginity—before, during, and after Jesus’s birth. And, as is quite standard for the Theotokos in icons, she is looking at Jesus.
But more traditional icons have Mary reclining on a large kind of pillow or bed. This serves two purposes: one is that Mary is always elevated off the earth in traditional icons, as she is too pure and more honorable than the cherubim and more glorious than the seraphim.
The second reason for the pillow? It’s to illustrate she is exempt from the pangs of birth. This underscores that her delivery was pain-free. Remember, labor and childbirth pains are the woman’s punishment for her sin, and Mary is sinless.
But what I really love about this icon is that its most traditional interpretation is this one, where Mary, in something very rare for an icon in which Jesus is also present, is not looking at Him but at Joseph. Mary is concerned. Joseph looks sad.
This is actually because that little man whose proportions are all off (and this is intentional, as is his weird posture—it’s to indicate something unnatural) is Satan. Joseph looks sad because Satan is trying to convince him Mary must be lying about Jesus and her virginity.
Mary, in looking at Joseph here, is actually praying for him. This part of the icon is meant to show her intercessory power.
Next to Satan is a tree. This isn’t the basis for our Christmas tree, although I could probably make that connection for fun lol. This is actually a reference to Isaiah 11—“there shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”
Next to the tree is an apocryphal scene. Some women (midwives, per the Protoevangelium of James) are bathing baby Jesus. This scene is opposite the scene of Satan deceiving Joseph because a baby being bathed is so very human and God being born to a virgin is so very divine.
(There’s some theology here, in that the bathing of Jesus is meant to show He was born as a human, not just as God just appearing human. But that’s for a different thread.)
Let’s move onto the magi. They come bearing gifts—gold for a king, frankincense for (the) God, myrrh for the dead—but look at them: they’re all different. All ages and in some icons all races. This is to show that Jesus came to save all people. (The Magi weren’t Jews, btw.)
Then there are angels announcing glad tidings to shepherds. There is an angelic chorus. This is self-explanatory, since it’s in the Gospels, but some posit that Mary’s prayers re Joseph’s doubt brought such an angelic host there. You can’t doubt when the Heavens throw a party.
Finally, there is the star, which you’ll notice is in a mandorla and shines on the scene much in the way the Holy Spirit descends upon Mary in the icon to the Annunciation.
OK so onto the icon of the Nativity of the Holy and Glorious Forerunner and Prophet John the Baptist. I think I’m gonna do a bunch of John the Baptist icons tonight, if I have the time.
But first, the Nativity: here are some versions.
But first, the Nativity: here are some versions.
You’ll notice that it looks exactly like the icon of the Nativity of Christ. This is because St. John is called the Forerunner, as he came before Christ, preaching and baptizing and preparing the way for His cousin. John the Baptist was born first, preached first, and died first.
(John the Baptist says of Jesus: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” His feast day is a few days after summer solstice, when the days start getting shorter (decreasing) while Christmas is 6 months later, when the days start getting longer after winter solstice (increasing).)
(John the Baptist is the most important saint after the Theotokos. This isn’t actually up for discussion as far as I’m concerned lol, but I do know that some in the West thinks it’s St. Joseph. St. John has 6 feast days in most Eastern calendars (and up to seven in Russia.))
(You might not know this but John the Baptist is considered the last OLD Testament prophet.)
As John precedes Christ as the Forerunner, most of the icon’s details—Elizabeth’s bed, Zechariah off to the side—are done in such a way to mirror the chronologically older Nativity of Christ icon, though the event of his birth is chronologically older than that of Jesus.
You’ll note that Zechariah has a scroll. This is to represent his writing on the tablet: “His name is John.” There are midwives tending to Elizabeth and also the neighbors rejoicing, bringing food and what looks like a super fun banner lol.
Before his birth, John the Baptist’s conception is also celebrated and is an icon. Here it is in the first two pictures, but I want to talk about the third picture, which is an icon with multiple scenes. Read it from top left, then bottom left, then top right, then bottom right.
This actually mirrors the story and also the icon of the Conception of the Virgin Mary (see below) quite a bit (but John’s conception is in the Gospel whereas Mary’s conception is from the Protoevangelium of James, which by now you can tell is a major source for icon writers.)
Like Anne and Joachim, Zechariah and Elizabeth were old and barren. Zechariah, praying and offering incense in the Temple, was approached by an angel of God who told him John would be born. Because Zechariah doubted (hence the face), he was struck with muteness.
He comes out of the Temple and the people waiting for him try to speak to him. They ascertain correctly that he has had a vision. He will remain mute until the prophecy he received comes to pass (Luke 1: 5-25), so he’s shown pointing at his mouth.
He went home and conceived with Elizabeth. Rarely is “sex” shown in icons but, when it is, it is this very chaste positioning, obviously. Here are Zechariah and Elizabeth, and also Joachim and Anne. You will never see Mary and Joseph posed like this, for obvious reasons.
(Interestingly, some more strict icon writers won’t even have Joseph touching Mary in an icon. For example, this one of the Holy Family is considered “””heretical””” by some Orthodox.)
The last part of the icon shows the Visitation. Identify Mary by the three stars on her clothes!
Let’s talk about John’s ministry. Here is an icon of his baptism of repentance.
We see the multitude coming to him to be baptized, coming out of a castle-like thing to indicate coming out of the city, into the wilderness. We even see them taking their clothes off.
(John is wearing camel’s hair and leather. Did you ever stop and wonder why the evangelists described his clothes? It was to harken back to Elijah, also a prophet who wore hair cloth and leather (2 Kings 1:8). He does a baptism of repentance, which is what sackcloth signifies.)
Then we see the naked people being baptized. Notice they’re not in the middle of the River. They’re by the shore. The middle is for Jesus. (I explain below.)
Also none of these animals are indigenous to Palestine but the icon writer, not knowing which animals would be indigenous, adds a UNICORN as a wink and nod to the reader like “I intentionally did a forest scene because I don’t know what a Levantine terrain might look like.”
John is looking up at God. That’s God the Father, a rarity in icons, but quite an ancient practice. You know it’s the Father by the 8-point halo (8-point glory). Why eight? It’s 7 days of creation with one day of y’all trinity. That’s why He is holding a glove.
Next up is the icon of the Holy Theophany (Epiphany in the West) of Christ.
You’d think it’s self-explanatory but icons are so layered. For example, Jesus is shown at the middle of the River, immersed in His own Creation, under the water to signify His eventual burial.
You’d think it’s self-explanatory but icons are so layered. For example, Jesus is shown at the middle of the River, immersed in His own Creation, under the water to signify His eventual burial.
Notice also the axe at trees, referencing “even now the axe is laid to the root of trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” This icon is not just Jesus’s baptism; it’s Christ’s ministry starting with this baptism.
The angels cover their hands with cloth, and this isn’t to hand it to Jesus so He can dry off lol. For much of history, the emperors of Rome and Constantinople would be served by people whose hands were covered, too impure were their own hands to hand anything to their king.
And what about the creatures/people in the River? I covered this when I said Jesus is immersed in His own creation, which is fallen. It flees from something greater than it. How can a baptism of repentance be done for He Who is sinless? “The sea looked and fled” (Psalm 114).
This typo is ruining my life rn. *globe, not glove https://twitter.com/byzanqueen/status/1204977471969464321
(Too sick to continue this week. 
I will finish mid-next week!)
I will finish mid-next week!)
