St. George Slaying the Dragon

Product Description

St. George Slaying the Dragon. The title reads Чудо Георгия о змие (in Old Slavonic, of course) and literally means The Miracle of St. George and the Dragon. Here he rides a white horse (the horse first appeared at the first millennium), as the hand of Christ emerges from a semi-circle and blesses him. It is the most well-known icon of him, which appeared in Novgorod in the 15th century. St. George is a symbol of the earthly manifestation of Archangel Michael, and is patron saint of Moscow, England, farmers, soldiers, prisoners and the poor, and scouting.

George the man was a Roman soldier born in the late 3rd century A.D. in Cappadocia. He was brought up Christian by his widowed mother in her hometown of Lydda, in Palestine. During the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian (245-316), the last major persecution of Christians occurred, and being a Roman commander by this time, George was ordered to take part. He refused and was tortured, killed, and eventually martyred. Devotion for St. George was early (a church was dedicated to him only a generation after his death) and widespread. His appearance in icons is depicted as a youth with curly brown hair, and attired in soldier's armor. Other titles for St George include The Great-martyr, The Victory-bearer and Wonder-worker George. George is "farmer", and compounds two Greek words: ge (earth or soil) and ergon (worker).

A beautifully painted icon. 6"x8", Russia. 1 only.

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