Description
There are many prayer books, but those wanting an authentic and accessible expression of the Church's ancient cycles of liturgical worship, in its rich variety, can look to the Anthologion and its riches, composed by Saint John of Damascus and others.
From the very beginning, Christians gathered for prayer at fixed hours to pray. These prayers centered on the Psalms, and in the desert monasteries they developed into the daily prayers of the Church that we still use today.
The Anthology of Prayer or Anthologion is an Eastern Orthodox prayer book that uniquely includes a treasury of selections from the riches of Orthodox prayer and worship, including:
- The Book of Hours (Horologion) with Lenten and Paschal variations
- The Book of Eight Tones (Octoechos)
- The services of the Twelve Great Feasts (Festal Menaion)
- The common services of Saints (General Menaion)
- Selections from Great Lent and the Paschal season (Triodion and Pentecostarion)
- The complete Psalter, divided into Kathismata for daily reading
- Traditional morning and evening prayers
- Topical prayers for different occasions
- And much more
Suitable for use individually or with a group, this monumental book aims to fill the place that the Breviary or Liturgy of the Hours fills for Western Christians: offering the full daily office of prayer in a slightly simplified form, with texts for special feast days and seasons. It is a prayer library in a single book.
Features
- The new 3rd Printing includes over 30% more content from the previous editions
- Over 1300 pages of sacred prayers, scriptures, and hymns, forming the foundation of Orthodox prayer and worship
- High quality bonded leather softcover with sewn binding
- Two-tone red and black printing
- Highly readable 10pt font
- Six ribbon bookmarks
- Designed for Pan-Orthodox use
- Abundant supporting material and clear instructions — with a little initiative and study, anyone can carry on the prayers of the Church in any circumstances with just a single book
Delivery & Returns
PRODUCTION
Our icons are hand-crafted and made-to-order. Allow time for production. Please note that your chosen shipping method does not include production time. (For example, if you select 2 day shipping, your order will be delivered 2 days after it ships, not 2 days after the order is placed.) Please visit our Shipping FAQ page for more information about how long you can expect production to take.
SHIPPING
We can ship to virtually any address in the world. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations. Also note that we ship international orders DDU. When you place an order, we will estimate shipping and delivery dates for you based on the availability of your items and the shipping options you choose. Depending on the shipping provider you choose, shipping date estimates may appear on the shipping quotes page. Click here to learn more about shipping.
RETURN POLICY
We allow returns for many of our items, but restrictions apply. Please visit our Return Policy page for more information.
Customer Reviews
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Quality and Clarity
As someone who's fairly new to exploring Eastern Orthodoxy—still an inquirer, not yet chrismated or anything—I've been trying to get a feel for what daily prayer actually looks like beyond the basics. I picked up the Anthologion from St. Ignatius Orthodox Press (the traditional English version with the thee/thou language) a few months back, and honestly, it's been a game-changer for me while I figure things out. I keep it next to a simpler pocket prayer book, but this one gets used way more when I want to pray something fuller.On the build quality side, this thing is seriously nice. It's got that solid, sewn binding that doesn't fall apart after you open it a bunch, and it lays pretty flat even when you're in the thick of it (which matters when your hands are full holding candles or whatever). The leather cover option feels premium without being over-the-top fancy, and the paper is decent—not too thin where it ghosts through, but not bulky either. Two-color printing (red rubrics, black text) is clean and sharp, font is big enough that I don't squint in dim light, and it came with a good handful of ribbons so I can mark spots without losing my place every five minutes. It's thick (like 900 pages thick), but it still feels portable enough to toss in a bag. Overall, it gives off that "this will last me years" vibe, not some cheap paperback that'll disintegrate.Clarity-wise, for a beginner like me, it's surprisingly helpful. It basically packs the Horologion (the daily cycle stuff: Vespers, Matins, Hours, etc.) into one volume along with bits from the Menaion, Triodion, and so on, so you don't have to chase down a dozen different books right away. The rubrics are printed in red and tell you exactly what comes next, and they insert the changing parts (like troparia or kontakia) right where you need them instead of making you flip back and forth constantly. That cuts down on a ton of the confusion I had when I first tried following along with just online resources or scattered PDFs. The language feels reverent and traditional, which matches what I've heard in services, and once you get the basic flow, it starts to make sense. There's still a learning curve—definitely watch their explanatory videos on the publisher's site—but it's way less frustrating than I expected for something this comprehensive.If you're checking out Orthodoxy and want to dip into more of the full daily offices without buying a whole shelf of service books, this is a fantastic starting point. It's not perfect (no complete Menaion or Divine Liturgy, for example), but for personal prayer at home, it's excellent. I still fall back on a basic Jordanville-style book for quick mornings when I'm rushed, but the Anthologion is what I reach for when I have time to really settle in. Totally worth it if you're serious about exploring the tradition's depth—I've learned a ton just by using it. Highly recommend giving it a shot.
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Great Prayer Book
Very good quality
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Comprehensive
Very comprehensive. So many tables and charts and it’s the same footprint as the lectionary.
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Highly recommend
Explains day services of the orthodox church in depth, prayers, fasting chart, prayers for before and after communion. A daily use book for orthodox Christians, a must have in my opinion.
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Fantastic prayer book
I have used a lot of Orthodox prayer books over the years. In my opinion, each prayer book has its strengths. While some aspects of this translation of the Anthologion are different than what I am used to, overall this is a fantastic prayer book and a solid translation. I still substitute in a few places with the version I have memorized, but that is just out of convenience and what I am used to. This book shines in breadth of services it contains including the dynamic parts and containing some of the regular commemorations celebrated. It is also setup to let you do as much or little as you may be able to. If you struggle sometimes, like me, to just do the regular morning and evening prayers, this will help you. And when you are able and wanting to do more, it's all at your fingertips. As someone who sometimes travels, this keeps all the regular prayers and services, including Typica and a tiny book of needs with me at all times. I also love the section on preparation for confession. TLDR: don't hesitate to buy this!
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Anthologion
Stunning book. It’s basically an Orthodox/Byzantine breviary for those who want to pray more than morning and evening prayers. I often follow along at Great Vespers in church and used it to follow along during Holy Week services and the accuracy and similarity of translations was astounding. Perfect for clergy and laity alike, this is a beautiful book, affordable and it might be the best prayerbook out there, period.
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Perfect
This prayer book was recommended to me and I couldn't be happier with it. It's absolutely beautifully made, and the print is perfect size. Quick shipping and very well packaged also. I think everyone should own this book and I hope to buy more as gifts. Thank you very much.
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I love this version of the Horologion for Readers use
Would highly recommend this Anthologian for those who wish to pray the Daily Office in the Byzantine tradition
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Anthologion
The Ahthologion here from St. Ignatius Press is a wonderful addition to any Orthodox Christian's prayer library. Perhaps not for those newly converted to orthodoxy, but for those of us who have been Orthodox for several years, and in my opinion, for any Orthodox layperson wanting to pray any of the daily services: Matins, the Hours, Vespers, etc; this highly professionally printed and exceptionally well-put-together volume allows us to pray as much or as little of all of the Canonical Hours from the Horologion as we are able, by providing all of the "common" of those services; i.e. the unchanging portions, as well as a large portion from the Octoechos, and a small selection from both the Lenten Triodion and the Pentecostarion. Additionally, included are the contents of the General Menaion for Major Feasts as well as a basic "parish typicon" to enable us to add the "propers"; i.e. the changeable portions of the services into the offices. The parish typicon is a very basic order for combining the propers and commons and thanks to how well this volume is put together, is extremely easy to use. Excellent job and well worth the $45 not only due to the contents, but also the quality of the book, the binding, etc. Thank you so much, and have a blessed upcoming Great Lent!!!
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Anthologian Prayer Book
The Best Orthodox Prayer Book Ever.
