\"Axion Esti\" Icon – Simple Series Wood L0.206*H0.265

Around 982 AD, a hieromonk and his disciple lived near Karyes, the capital of Mount Athos. One evening, the disciple was visited by an elder who, according to tradition, was the Archangel Gabriel. The church where the visit took place housed an icon of the Theotokos; the next morning, as they began to chant the customary hymn, the elder sang: \"It is truly right to bless you, O Theotokos, ever-blessed and all-pure, and Mother of our God.\" The elder then declared, \"From now on, let all Christians chant the hymn to the Theotokos in this way.\" Having said this, he vanished; meanwhile, according to tradition, the icon of Christ on the church\'s iconostasis instantly shifted to the left, while the icon of the Mother of God moved to the right. This arrangement remains to this day on the cell\'s wood-carved iconostasis.