Iconographers

Saint Nectarios (also spelled Nektarios or Nectarius) was from Thrace (in modern northern Turkey). He was born in 1846 and became a monk in 1876. He was blessed to undertake theological studies in Athens, and was ordained a priest in Cairo, Egypt, in...

This icon by American iconographer Mark Fiorenzo depicts the great 20th century luminary Saint Nektarios in his black monastic habit. He holds the Gospel and raises his hand in a gesture of blessing, proper to his role in the Church as a bishop. Saint...

Saint Patrick was a 5th century missionary and bishop in Ireland, and he is the foremost patron saint of that country. His feast is celebrated on March 17 by Christians all around the world. In the icon, he is vested as a bishop. He holds the Gospel in...

This 21st-century Bulgarian icon, painted by the hand of Georgi Chimev, features Saints Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and John Chrysostom. About the year 1100, there arose a discussion among the Christians of Constantinople about which of...

This beautiful icon of beloved Saint Euphrosynos is by the hand of American iconographer Mark Fiorenzo. It shows the humble saint in his monastic clothing, holding the three golden apples of Paradise mentioned in the account of his life. Saint...

St. Basil was born in Caesarea in 329, to a holy family full of saints. He went to complete his education in Athens, where he first met his lifelong friend St. Gregory the Theologian. Later, after he had spent some time in solitude, Basil became a...

Saint Joseph was born in Greece in 1897. At the age of 23 he began to read the lives of the Saints, which sparked a yearning to enter the monastic life. He began to withdraw to the uninhabited countryside, and finally departed to Mount Athos. He...

This 21st-century Bulgarian icon, painted by the hand of Georgi Chimev, features Saints Photius the Great, Gregory Palamas, and Mark of Ephesus. Also known as the Three New Holy Hierarchs, these holy Hierarchs had significant roles in guiding the...

Born to wealthy and devout Christian parents in Egypt, Anthony was always sensitive to the duties of faith. When his parents died, Anthony distributed his inheritance to the poor and went to live a life in solitude that set an example for...

Saint Patrick was a 5th century missionary and bishop in Ireland, and he is the foremost patron saint of that country. His feast is celebrated on March 17 by Christians all around the world. In the icon, he is vested as a bishop. He holds the Gospel in...

Although St. Paul was not one of the original Apostles, called while Jesus was on earth, he is known today as a chief Apostle, and his works were vital in the church’s beginning. Paul, known at that time as Saul, was a Roman citizen who persecuted...

Saint Seraphim is one of the Orthodox Church's most beloved holy elders. This icon was painted in the 19th century, featuring beautifully embossed gold and colored inlays. He was born in western Russia in 1754. According to tradition, he was sickly as...

The Glorious Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John was the older cousin of our Lord. He was born miraculously of his aged parents, specially chosen by God to prepare the way for Christ, the Messiah. It was John who identified Jesus as "the Lamb of God...

St. Peter, a chief Apostle along with St. Paul, was originally called Simon. The names "Peter" and "Cephas" both mean rock, and were both given by Jesus. He was first called alongside his brother Andrew.   Peter is known for committing a great...

Saint Justin was born in Palestine in the year 103. He was incredibly intelligent and had a love of knowledge, which led him to a fervent study of Greek philosophy. After probing the depths of Plato and others, he concluded that none of them could...

Emperor Constantine the Great, Equal-to-the-Apostles, legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire. He once saw a vision of the Cross in the sky and heard a voice say, "In this sign conquer." His feast is celebrated on May 21, together with his mother...

Saint Romanos (or Romanus) the Melodist was born in Syria in the late 5th century. After serving as a deacon in Beirut, he went on to Constantinople. While he served the Church passionately, he felt his voice was weak. He prayed to the Mother of God,...

Noah was an Old Testament Patriarch who lived at the time of the Great Flood. In his lifetime, he was judged by God to be the only righteous man left in the world. When God destroyed the world in the Flood, Noah and his family were saved in the Ark...

The Great Prophet and King David, who lived about the 11th century before Christ, is one of the great prefigurements of our Lord. One of his greatest contributions to the Christian faith is the book of Psalms; many of these hymns prophecy the coming of...

Saint Justinian the Great reigned as Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, tens of thousands of pagans were baptized into Christ and the pagan schools of Athens were closed. Some ninety missionary churches were built to evangelize and...

Saint Theodore the Soldier (or "the Recruit," "the Tyro" or Theodore of Amasea) was a soldier and martyr in the early 4th century, enduring the persecutions of the emperors Maximian and Maximus. When it was discovered he was a Christian, a judge...

Father Roman Braga was born in 1922 in a small village in central Moldova. His mother was a devout Orthodox Christian, and she raised him in a religious environment centered around the monastery of Condrita. During World War II, Roman attended seminary...

Saint Ambrose was born in Gaul about the year 340, and served as a member of the Roman Senate. In those days, the bishop of Milan was a follower of the heretic Arius. When the bishop died and the time came to elect his successor, violence broke...

While Elijah and Elisha are both notable for their prophetic deeds, Isaiah (or Isaias), who appears in the Bible shortly after Elisha’s death, is a more traditional prophet of words. Isaiah advised Hezekiah, a God-fearing king, passing on...

The martyrs Adrian and Natalia (Natalie) were husband and wife from Nicomedia, and they suffered around the turn of the 4th century. Adrian was a pagan, but when he saw the bravery of the Christian martyrs, he declared himself to be a Christian. For...

St. John the Evangelist did not only author a Gospel, but was a much beloved Apostle and minister of Jesus. He and his brother James were both fishermen and both called to Jesus at the same time and place. Jesus also gave him the surname "Boanerges,"...

This contemporary Byzantine icon depicts Saint Irenaeus of Lyons. Living in the second century, he was baptized and discipled by Saint Polycarp. A faithful son of the Church, he wrote against heresies, including the Gnostics and Marcionites. He was the...

This beautiful contemporary icon depicts Saints Nicholas and Spyridon the Wonderworkers, Protectors of Those at Sea. Traditionally considered the protectors and patrons of those who travel by sea, they intercede for all of those who travel.  A...

Samuel’s prophecies were a driving force in the era after the Israelites had settled in one land. His conception and birth, after his then-barren mother Hannah offered her sorrow to God and asked for His mercy and blessing, foreshadows the...

St. Luke was not one of the Twelve Apostles, but was one of the the four Evangelists. He was a Gentile, not a Jew, born in Antioch. He is known for being a physician. He became a disciple of St. Paul and he travelled with Paul and Peter through the...

This icon is a beautiful contemporary Byzantine portrayal of the Old Testament Prophet Daniel. Renowned for his faithfulness to the God of his fathers in a foreign land, the Prophet Daniel figures in some of the most well-known stories from Hebrew and...

This beautiful Byzantine icon of Saint Andrew the First Called Apostle depicts the faithful disciple called by Christ at the Sea of Galilee along with his brother Peter and close companions, James and John (John 1:35-42). According to Holy Tradition,...

St. Thomas, like many of the other Apostles, was a fisherman before he followed Jesus. Thomas is involved in one important point in scripture, just after the Resurrection. Thomas was not with the other disciples when the risen Christ first came to them,...

This icon is a beautiful contemporary Byzantine portrayal of the Old Testament Prophet Ezekiel. Renowned for his visions of the angelic hosts and the New Jerusalem, his message of God’s salvation came at a time of national calamity. Handcrafted in...

This historic Russian icon depicts Michael the Archangel, captain of the bodiless powers of heaven. Robed in vivid crimson and blue, his traditional colors, he bears a rod in his left hand noting his authority.  Painted by the renowned Russian...

Saint Nicodemus (or Nikodemos) was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin. He is known as "the Secret Disciple" because he visited Jesus at night to discuss his teachings (John 3). He became known as a disciple of Christ, but not openly. As a member...

This icon is a beautiful contemporary Byzantine portrayal of the Old Testament Prophet Jeremiah. Renowned for his prophecies of the coming Messiah and records of the destruction of Jerusalem during the Babylonian exile, his message of enduring hope...

Saint Innocent served as a missionary among the native peoples of Alaska. Along with his wife and family, he was devoted to educating the Aleuts and bringing them to Christ. When his wife died, he became a bishop and served as Metropolitan of Moscow...

St. Matthew the Evangelist, also called Levi, also appears both among the icons of the Apostles and beneath the dome. As one of the Twelve Apostles, he witnessed the works and miracles of Jesus, and is traditionally held to have described those in the...

One of the first who Jesus called to be Apostles, St. Andrew was the brother of St. Peter and a fisherman by trade. He and Peter were fishing in the sea of Galilee when Jesus called them to become “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19, Mark 1:17)...