Such an image of the Mother of God is one of Her very first icon-painting images and inherits such ancient images as Oranta and Nicopeia. In Greece, such an image usually denoted the Nativity of Christ, and only in Russia did such icons receive the name "Signs", that is, a sign of the mercy of the Mother of God. Such icons of the Mother of God appeared in Russia in the -12th centuries, and they began to be called that after a miraculous sign that happened in the year from such an icon in Novgorod.
Novgorod Sign of the Most Holy Theotokos
Description of the icon
The Novgorod Znamenskaya Icon is 13 1/2 inches high and 12 inches wide. Above the left eye of the Mother of God there was a trace of an arrow. On the sides of the icon there are images of the great martyr George the Victorious, the martyr James the Persian and the Monks Peter the Athos and Onufry the Great. The icon had a golden riza weighing over 71/2 pounds with precious stones.
Story
In the year the icon was renewed by Metropolitan Macarius. AT next year in Novgorod, a strong fire broke out, engulfing many streets. No effort could stop the formidable elements. Then Metropolitan Macarius went with a procession to the Church of the Sign and there, kneeling before the miraculous icon, he prayed for an end to the disaster. Then, picking up the icon, he carried it in procession along the banks of the Volkhov. Soon the wind blew towards the river, and the fire from this began to subside.
The Swedes captured Novgorod in the same year. Beating Novgorodians, they robbed houses and churches, desecrated icons, and carried away sacred dishes and utensils. Somehow, several Swedes approached the Church of the Sign, where a service was being held at that time, and the doors were therefore open. They rushed to the church to rob it, but an invisible force threw them back. They again rushed to the doors and were again driven back. This became known to all the Swedes, and none of them tried to enter this temple again.
In 1999, silversmith Luka Plavilshchikov planned to rob this church. At the end of the evening service on November 27, he hid in the church, and at night he entered the altar, collected silver vessels from the altar, poured out money from mugs, and, finally, began to approach the miraculous icon in order to tear off precious jewelry from it. But as soon as he touched the robe, he was thrown away from the icon and fell senseless to the floor. Before Matins, the sexton who came to the church took him out, believing that Luke had remained in the church in a drunken state. At the same time, he did not notice that under Plavlshchikov there were church vessels. The theft was discovered when they began to serve matins, and everything was found in Luke's house. The thief lost his mind for a while and only later spoke about the miracle that had happened from the icon.
Subsequently miraculous icon The "Sign" of the Mother of God stood in the iconostasis of the Cathedral of the Sign, to the left of the royal gates.
After the October Revolution of 1917, the icon ended up in the museum collection of the Novgorod Museum. During the Great Patriotic War it was evacuated and at the end of the war returned to the museum-reserve.
On August 15, the return of the icon to the Novgorod diocese took place. On this day, many who were present witnessed a celestial phenomenon: a rainbow surrounded the golden dome of the Novgorod Sophia Cathedral with a ring, and then began to rise and disappeared into a cloudless sky. The icon resides in the St. Sophia Cathedral in Veliky Novgorod.
miraculous lists
Numerous copies of the Icon of the Sign are known throughout Russia and beyond. Many of them shone with miracles in local temples and were named after the place where miracles occurred. Such lists of the Icon of the Sign include the icons of Abalakskaya, Verkhnetagilskaya, Vologda, Dionisiyevo-Glushitskaya, Kursk-Root, Pavlovskaya, Serafimo-Ponetaevskaya, Solovetskaya, Tsarskoye Selo and many others.
Prayers
Troparion, tone 4
Like an invincible wall and a source of miracles, / having acquired Thee, Thy servants, the Most Pure Theotokos, / we depose the opposing militia. / The same we pray to Thee, / grant peace to our fatherland // and great mercy to our souls.
Kontakion, tone 4
Come faithful, let us lightly celebrate / the all-honorable image of the Mother of God is a wonderful appearance / and from that we draw grace, / we cry out with tenderness: // rejoice, Mary the Mother of God, Mother of God, Blessed.
Prayer
O Most Holy and Blessed Mother of our Sweetest Lord Jesus Christ! We bow down and worship Thee before Thy holy miraculous icon, remembering the wondrous sign of Thy intercession, manifested from it to the great Newgrad during the days of the military invasion of this city. We humbly pray to Thee, the All-Powerful Intercessor of our kind: as if in ancient times Thou hastened to help our fathers, so now we, weak and sinners, are worthy of Your motherly intercession and well-being. Save and save, Mistress, under the protection of Your mercy, the Holy Church, Your city (Your abode), our entire Orthodox country and all of us who fall to You with faith and love, tenderly asking with tears of Your intercession. Hey, Lady All-Merciful! Have mercy on us, overwhelmed by the sins of many, stretch out Your God-receiving hand to Christ the Lord and intercede for us before His goodness, asking us for forgiveness of our sins, a pious peaceful life, a good Christian death and a good answer at his terrible Judgment, yes, save Your all-powerful to With prayers, we will inherit heavenly bliss and with all the saints we will sing the Most Honorable and Magnificent Name of the Worshipful Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and Your great mercy to us forever and ever. Amen.
Perhaps an error, because By this time Saint Macarius of Moscow had died.
Iko-na this pro-glory-was in the XII century in New-go-ro-de, when vla-di-mi-ro-suz-dal-sky prince An-drey Bo-go-lyub -sky entered into a union with the princes-zya-mi Smo-Len-sky, in pilot-kim, Ryazan-sky, Mu-rom-sky and others and for-mys-lil with their help, to conquer the Ve-li-kiy New-go-rod, and for this he sent his son to his Avenge-glory. A huge army co-stayed, - according to the words of the le-to-pis-tsa nyh more princes then bya-she 72. Even a long time before New-go-ro-yes, people began to rob and burn the village, beat the man-rank, and take the children and women prisoner, to make their slaves out of them. In the winter of 1170, the gro-mad-noe militia is about-lo-zhi-lo New-go-rod, in-tre-bo-vav surrender. More than once, both sides are on-chi-on-whether re-go-in-ry, but could not come to an agreement.
Na-cha-moose s-s-same. It was clear on whose side the truth was, and new-borns with a pure heart could ask God for help and wait for heaven but-th-step-le-niya. So they are in a stu-pi-whether. We didn’t close the temples day or night, and the singing of the church mixes with a lament. Archbishop John, since under New-go-rod, under-sto-pee-whether enemies, three days and three nights, he tirelessly prayed in co-bo- re St. So-fii - Pre-wisdom-ro-sti of God about the spa-se-nii of the city. On the third night, standing in front of the icon of the All-my-lo-sti-of-th Savior, he suddenly felt a sacred trembling, and then from the icon we heard a voice:
- Go to the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is on Ilyinskaya Street, take the image of the Pre-holy God-go-ro- di-tsy, lift him to the city walls, and then you will see the spa-se-ing of the city.
A miraculous solace was then-gone in the old heart of the saint. In a hot, soothing prayer, without words, he fell prostrate before the icon and spent the whole night in prayer. In the morning he took the spirit and the city representatives and told them about the mysterious voice. Then, at the mournful new-cities, hope appeared. Archbishop John sent pro-to-dia-ko-na and cli-ri-kov to the Church of the Savior on Ilyinskaya Street, so that they don’t come from that -yes, iko-well, Bo-go-ma-te-ri, and he himself began to sing so-born mo-le-bain. But despite all the efforts of those sent, they couldn’t somehow move the icon from its place, and with this lis to ar-hi-epi-sko-pu. Then St. John himself at the head of the cross-yes-yes, with-the-leader-yes-e-my family and the clergy, went to the Church of the Spa. There he fell on a ko-le-ni in front of the icon Bo-go-ma-te-ri and cried out with tears:
- Oh, Pre-mi-lo-sti-vaya Vla-dy-chi-tsa Bo-go-ro-di-tsa, hope and for-step-ni-tsa city on-she-mu, do not betray us for our sins to our enemies. But hear our cry and spare Thy people.
Did mo-le-ben begin to serve, and when did they-whether: “In the presence of christ-en-un-shameful, ho-da-tay-stvo to Creation -tsu immutable, do not despise sinful mo-le-ny voices, ”Iko-na sa-ma for-ko-le-ba-las, as if moving towards ar -hee-epi-sko-pu. Seeing this is a miracle, the people and the clergy are happy, but cry-wa-li: “Lord, by the way, by the way!”.
The arch-bishop-scop took on his hands a miraculously creative image, attached himself to him, and then the icon, well, with the did they carry it to the city wall and in-hundred-wi-whether its face to na-pa-dav-shim. But in-and-we Avenge-glory-va did not soften-chi-lis and put-whether whole clouds of arrows at this place. And here is one of them, a ra-ni-la sacred face. Then a new-miracle was made: iko-on about-ra-ti-las sa-ma-come to the city, and from her eyes flowed a trace -zy. At the same time, terror fell on the pa-da-shih. They have a darker vision, and they began to re-make each other. New-go-rod-tsy, encouraged-know-me-ni-em, from-in-ri-whether in-ro-ta, rushed at the enemies, beat them on-go-lo-woo and many were taken captive. Those who fled, could not find themselves pro-pi-ta-niya where before they themselves pro-from-ve-whether without- pitiful omission. They died from hunger and sickness, and as with horror, le-to-pi-sets, in Ve-li-kiy post they pi-ta-were- catfish of their lo-sha-day.
Arch-hi-bishop John then established-but-vil-celebrated-but-va-nie in the memory of miracles-des-no-go for-step-le-ning, oka-zan-no-go Bo-go-ma-te-ryu New-go-ro-du. Since February 25-ra-la is the day when co-ver-shi-moose is an event - almost always come-ho-dit-sya on mas-le-ni-tsu or Great post, then the holiday is re-re-but-sit-sya on November 27-th.
Almost two centuries of miraculously creative icon-on “Knowledge” -Vyan-noy church-vi Spa-sa. In 1357, she was transferred to a newly built stone church in the name of the Sign on the same Ilyinskaya Street.
In 1566, a strong fire broke out in New-go-ro-de, covering many streets. No-ka-ki-mi usi-li-i-mi couldn’t leave the formidable element. Then the mit-ro-po-lit Ma-ka-riy went with a procession to the Church of the Knowing and there, pre-clo-niv ko-le-no before miracle-to-creative icon, prayed for the end of disaster. Then, having raised the icon, he carried it with a cross procession along the banks of the Vol-ho-va. Soon the wind blew a hundred-ro-well rivers, and the heat from this began to subside.
In 1611, New-go-ro-house ovla-de-li shwe-dy. From bi-vai new-go-rod-tsev, they gra-bi-li do-ma and their temples. Icons they under-ver-ga-whether in-ru-ga-niyu, and sacred in-su-du and utensils uno-si-li. Somehow, a few Swedes went to the Church of the Knowing, where at that time a service was performed, and the door would-whether from-roof-you. They rushed into the church to rob it, but nevi-di-may si-la from-br-si-la them back. They again rushed to the door and again would be from-bro-she-us. This has become of all the Swedes, and none of them have tried to enter the Church of the Sign of the Sign anymore.
In 1636, he thought of stealing this church of se-reb-rya deeds by master Lu-ka Pla-vil-shchikov. At the end of the evening service on November 27, he came to the church, and at night he went into the altar, collected -rib-rya-nye-so-su-dy with a victim-vein-no-ka, you-sy-fell money-gi from mugs and, finally, began to approach the miracle -creative icon, in order to tear off precious jewelry from it. But as soon as he touched the ri-za, he was thrown away from the icon and fell unconscious to the floor. Before the morning, having appeared in the church in no-mar, he led him out, la-gay that Lu-ka had remained in the church in a drunken state. At the same time, he did not note that under Pla-vil-shchi-ko-ve there were church co-courts. Theft was about-to-ru-zhi-las, when they began to serve morning-nu, and everything was in Lu-ka's house. The thief for a while lost the ras-su-dok and only later told about the former miracle from the icon.
Miraculously-creative icon-on “Zna-me-nie” Bo-go-ro-di-tsy stands in icon-no-sta-se Zna-men-go-so-bo-ra, to the left of the royal gates. She has 13 1/2 vertices of you-shi-na and 12 shi-ri-na. Above the left eye of Bo-go-ma-te-ri, there was a trace of an arrow. According to a hundred-ro-us, icons-we have-is-bra-zhe-niya ve-li-ko-mu-che-no-ka Ge-or-gy Po-be-to-nos-tsa, mu -che-no-ka Ia-ko-va Per-si-ya-ni-on and the pre-good Peter and Onufry of Athos. In 1565, Iko-on-the-new-le-na-mit-ro-po-li-tom Ma-ka-ri-em. On the icon there is a golden ri-for a weight of over 71/2 pounds with dra-go-tsen-ny-mi ka-me-nya-mi.
Iko-on “Knowledge” represents-la-et Bo-go-mother with mo-lit-ven-but under-nya-you-mi ru-ka-mi and yav-la-e - my in the bosom of her Divine Infant. The image-bra-ing is in-a-moose on the pe-cha-tyah of the epi-sko-pa of the New-born. It is very ancient pro-is-hoj-de-niya, since in Rome, in ka-ta-com-bah, St. Ag-nii, there is an image of the fourth century. Bo-go-ma-te-ri with mo-lit-veins-but ras-pro-era-you-mi-ru-ka-mi and with the Pre-eternal Child on knees. In Greece, such a picture of a brother-n-e-it meant usually-but-ven-but the birth of Christ, and only here, in Russia , ikon-us in-lu-chi-whether on-name-no-va-nie "Zna-me-niya", i.e. sign of mi-lo-sti Bo-go-ma-te-ri. On some city icons in three de-i-ni-yah, there is a picture of a miraculous event of 1170: up-hu - re-re-not-se-nie icons from the church of the Spa-sa on the city wall; below - pe-re-go-in-ry between both-and-mi hundred-ro-na-mi, and below - sa-ma bit-wa, where new-go-rod-tsam -mo-ga-yut an-ge-ly with long pi-ka-mi.
The most ancient image of the Mother of God "The Sign" in Russia is the Novgorod icon, painted in the second quarter - the middle of the XII century. But the name "Sign" begins to be associated with it, oddly enough, only at the end of the 15th century, especially clearly - from the 16th century, and finally fixed in the 17th. The feast of the icon was celebrated on November 27, apparently, even before its miracle to the people of Novgorod, which happened on February 25, 1169 (1170). In the Novgorod First Chronicle it is reported that the Novgorodians defeated the Suzdalians "by the power of the Cross and the Holy Mother of God", that is, any name is not yet associated with the icon. The chronicler calls the icon simply “the Holy Mother of God”, without a specific epithet. The word "sign" then, as usual, was used in the same sense as in V.I. Dahl: “A sign is a sign, a sign, a sign; brand, tamga, seal; natural phenomenon or miracle for signification, proof; an omen of something."The etymology of the word "sign" is directly related to the verb "to know". Indo-European ĝen - "to know" is identical to ĝen - "to give birth, be born" and comes from this latter. It is the concepts of “to be born” and “to know” that make up the meaning of the word “sign”.
Consider the symbolic and theological meanings of the iconography of the image. At the same time, let's not forget about the conventions of the language of the icon and the difference between the image and the depicted. I.K. Yazykova writes: “At the moment of contemplation of the icon, the holy of holies, the inner Mary, in whose bowels the God-man is conceived by the Holy Spirit, is revealed to the praying one.” Let's emphasize this "as if". With this reservation, one of the meanings of the circle in which Emmanuel is depicted should be understood and perceived as symbol revelations. But anyway revelations- Divine sign. And although the most intimate is revealed to us, nevertheless, this is only the first step in the conversation of the icon with us, when a sign is a “foreshadowing of something.” On the second step, the Mother of God, knowing Savior before Christmas, still in the womb, gives birth- on the icon, as if eternally sends - the Divine Infant into the world for the salvation of the human race.
The hands of the Mother of God are raised to the sky, they are wide open towards the One who is higher than the whole universe, and at the same time they bless those who pray. This is a very ancient prayer gesture: according to Tertullian, the hands of the Christians of his time were raised and extended, "imitating the passion of the Lord." The prayerfully raised hands of the Virgin also mean intercession for people before God. The inscription on one of the Byzantine seals of the early 13th century reads: “Stretching out Your hands and bringing Your intercession to the whole universe, give me Your cover, O Most Pure One, for what I have to do.” With hands raised to heaven, Moses also prayed during the battle between the Israelites and the Amalekites: “And when Moses raised his hands, Israel prevailed, and when he lowered his hands, Amalek prevailed; but the hands of Moses were heavy, and then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hor supported his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. And his hands were lifted up until the sun went down” (Ex. 17:11-12). Here the significance of the entire psychophysical side of prayer is clearly confirmed: it is not enough to pronounce words in the heart, the posture of the prayer and his gestures play an important role. Let us also pay attention to the theme of light and grace that accompanies this gesture. The name "Aaron" is translated as "mountain of light", "Or" - "light". And the hands of Moses himself were “raised until the sun went down,” that is, the hands supported by the “lights” stretched out to the Light and received the grace of God. In the same way, during the liturgy, the priest stretches out his hands in front of the altar, exclaiming: "Woe to our hearts." Therefore, we can talk about the canonicity of this gesture, which has been used in the liturgy since ancient times, about a kind of connection through this gesture of the Old and New Testaments. And here we see the fulfillment of the Old Testament in the New. The Infant of God in the pictorial relation is conditional, but eternally is born into the world to save him. Therefore, He is often placed in a mandorla, through the circles of which Divine energies seem to emanate into the world (again, the theme of light and grace, reflected even in the color of Emmanuel's clothes). Mandorla in this case acts as sign movements are the movements of the Child and the light. And when, during the siege of Novgorod, the arrow of the Suzdalians hit the icon and the icon turned away from the attackers, the Suzdalians thereby lost their light and grace, and the Novgorodians, on the contrary, received this grace for decisive action and victory over the enemy. Recall that the Greek ενέργεια is translated as an active force, and a sign, according to V.I. Yes, there is a sign. But in Greek a sign - σημειον - is a wonderful sign, not an ordinary one. In the Novgorod Festive Menaion (c. the second quarter of the 14th century), this word is used in relation to the miraculous icon precisely in the meaning of “foreshadowing”, “miracle”. Another purpose of the mandorla in this case is to emphasize the Christocentrism of the icon: both with concentric circles around the Divine Infant - “Light has come into the world” (John 3: 19), and with its high hierarchical status in the system of iconographic symbols. The arms of the Divine Infant outstretched from the medallion Great Panagia(from the Greek Παναγία - All-holy) indicate the penetration of eternity into time, which means the abolition of time, which is typical for the Orthodox worldview.So, the first meaning of the “Sign” icon is revelation. At the same time, there is another meaning in it: Christians, for their part, get to know Birth and coming into the world of the Savior, know Him and testify of Him as recognized. That is, birth (γέννησις), in fact, takes place in the name of creation (γένεσις), in order to return creation to the Divine plan: so that man becomes a created god by grace. In other words, without division and confusion, the dual unity of “God and me” arises – the unity that S.L. Franc. Recall that the word "God" in theology indicates the property, the nature, and the word "God" - the Personality. As a supertemporal or timeless act, the words of the prophet Isaiah are fulfilled: “Behold, the Virgin in the womb will receive and give birth to a Son and will call His name Emmanuel, which means: God is with us” (Is. 7: 14; Matt. 1: 23). In the 15th century, this text of Isaiah is given not only on the icons of the prophetic rank of the iconostasis, as in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, but also serves as the basis for free literary transcriptions, in which the word "sign" is used in relation to prophecy.
The religious experience of prayerful communion with an icon allows one to discover in oneself a new state filled with Divine energies. The Greek term ένθεος, lit. "filled with divinity" This state is indicated by the words of Christ: “The kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). We are clothed in Christ, and Christ dwells in us. In this case, on a personal level, a real relationship is established between the Prototype and a person through the medium of an icon, and on a public level, the icon becomes a national shrine. Thus, the image of the Mother of God “The Sign” became the sacred guardian of Veliky Novgorod. This icon was considered in Byzantium and in Russia also the patroness of the Church, which explains the frequent use of its iconography on the seals of monasteries, dioceses and metropolises, in lunettes above the entrance to the temple, in the conchs of apses. There are grounds for establishing a connection between the image of the Mother of God "The Sign" and the icon of the Annunciation. If in the bowels of Mary “the God-man is conceived by the Holy Spirit”, as I.K. Yazykov, then this is the beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecy about Emmanuel: the good news has passed into the stage of its fulfillment. Therefore, E.S. Smirnova is absolutely right, considering the images on the reverse side of the icon as images of Joachim and Anna, and not the Apostle Peter and the martyr Natalia, as V.N. Lazarev with followers. The theme of the Incarnation is central to the icon of the Sign (which is why this iconography is canonical for the center of the prophetic tier of the iconostasis). Both sides of the famous Novgorod image, with increasing content, testify precisely to the Incarnation. Otherwise, the theological connection between the obverse and reverse of this icon is lost, which comes into conflict with the practice of church life. Such a connection was present in the vast majority of external Orthodox images.
A special rite in honor of the Mother of God, called the "Order of the Ascension of the Panagia", is directly connected with the "Sign" icon. But we know that the Panagia is also called the encolpion - a small image of the Virgin, worn by the bishop on his chest over the vestments, and the prosphora, from which a particle was removed at the liturgy in memory of the Most Pure. During the meal, prosphora was always placed on a special dish - panagiar - with the image of Our Lady of the Sign, often surrounded by prophets. On Byzantine panagiars of the 12th-13th centuries one can see the inscription: “Christ is Bread. The Virgin gives the body to God the Word. The inscription was applied not only for the sake of decoration; its meaning was to mysteriously connect the rank Panagia and the meaning of holy bread - the body of Christ, received by Him from His Mother. so chin Panagia brings us back to the topic of the Incarnation.The pedigree of the iconography of the "Sign" goes back to the image of Oranta, which in Russia was also called the "Indestructible Wall", because "it was considered the intercessor of" all cities, suburbs and villages "in the struggle against the eternal enemies - the steppe nomads". Is it correct to assume that Oranta was depicted as an intercessor, starting with the murals of the catacombs? In them one can see many images similar in iconography: this is how, for example, the souls of the dead were originally depicted, who prayed for the still living Christians.
Oranta was and is a symbol of the Heavenly Church. She became such in full measure and consciously from the moment when she was identified with the personality of the Mother of God. Already in the catacombs, "under the image of a praying wife, the ancient Christians sometimes used to portray none other than the Blessed Virgin Mary", accompanying the frescoes with the inscriptions "Maria" and "Mara". However, "in these orants we have not a portrait, customized type The Mother of God, but Her conditional image, adopted for every sedate Christian woman. However, in the “Ascension” brand of the Monza ampulla (the iconography of the stamps dates back to the 4th-6th centuries), we see Oranta already, undoubtedly, in the person of the Mother of God, we see Her as the personification of the apostolic Church.Since the 9th century, they began to write the Most Pure in the conch of the apse. As I.K. Yazykov, since then “the theme of intercession has taken on a broader aspect: the prayer of the Mother of God links together the Kingdom of Heaven, represented in the upper part of the temple, with the “world of the valley” - under Her feet. The Mother of God Oranta, as it were, opens up to meet Christ, Who descends through Her to the earth, incarnates in a human form and sanctifies human flesh with Her Divine presence, turning it into a temple - hence the Mother of God Oranta is interpreted as the personification Christian temple, as well as the whole New Testament Church".
Serbian painters in the 14th century painted a fresco similar to the Novgorod icon "The Sign", where the Mother of God, depicted in full growth, is dressed not in the usual tunic, but in a chiton with claves. Similar examples can be seen on some frescoes of Oranta in the catacombs. The Mother of God in this case was understood as the Church itself and as a messenger. If earlier the intercession of the Most Pure implied a movement from the bottom to the top, then here it is understood as apostolic and directed from the top to the bottom.Protographers of the image of Our Lady of the Sign have also been known since the 4th century (the catacombs of St. Agnes in Rome) and, judging by the absence of a halo in the Divine Infant, were created before the First Ecumenical Council, that is, before 325. And in the 5th-6th centuries they were already written on icons and in wall paintings temples, minted on coins, reproduced on the seals of the Byzantine emperors, which indicates their Constantinople origin. This iconography has been especially widespread since the 11th-12th centuries and becomes popular throughout the Orthodox ecumene. Nevertheless, many art historians consider the time of the appearance of this recension to be only the middle of the 11th century, referring to the surviving images of coins (nomisma of the empresses Zoya and Theodora,1042) and sphragistics (seals of Empress Evdokia Makremvolitissa, wife of Constantine X in 1059-1067 and Roman IV in 1068-1071). Apparently, the confusion here is due to the fuzzy classification of the names of iconographic types, since the tradition of fixing the stable names of one or another type of the Theotokos icons takes shape only by the time of sunset. Byzantine Empire, and possibly later - already in the post-Byzantine time.
According to I.K. Linguistically, the iconography of Oranta is an abbreviated and truncated version of the image of Our Lady of the Sign. Such an opinion cannot but arouse objections. Since the version of Oranta is older than the “Sign”, the first cannot be an “abbreviated version” of the second: only what is already there can be truncated. Here we are dealing not with the reduction of the iconography of the image, but with its construction. Therefore, the scheme "Signs" and more complicated schemes Orants, and not only externally, but also internally. “This is the most theologically rich iconographic type,” I.K. Yazykov.
Using the example of the Cypriot frescoes, we have already verified the undoubted connection between the images of the image of the “Sign” and the image of Our Lady Blachernitissa, which only confirms the understanding of the word “sign” as a miracle, because the events of 910 that took place in the Blachernae Church have been celebrated by Russian for more than eight hundred years Orthodox Church as the feast of the Protection of the Mother of God. Apparently, it is natural that the icon is called "The Sign" only in Russia and nowhere else. In other countries, it is known under other names, mainly taken from akathists.In the art of the Byzantine circle, several terms were used for this iconography, which are often used by art historians: “Platitera” (from “Πλαντυτέρα τόν ουρανόν” - “Broader of heaven”, from the liturgy of Basil the Great), “Episkepsis” (“Επίσκεψις” - “Patroness , Intercessor"), "Megali Panagia" ("Μεγάλη Παναγία" - "Great All-Holy") ". Let's add here "Pantonassa" ("παντο" - "everything" + "νάσσα" from "ναίω" - "to live, inhabit; be; inhabit").
It should also be noted a certain iconographic connection between the image of the Mother of God "The Sign" and the icon Our Lady Nicopeia(victorious). During the restoration of the Blachernae Church (1030-1031) during the reign of Emperor Roman III Argyra, the builders discovered an icon immured in the wall, which was hidden from the iconoclasts, most likely in the 8th century under Emperor Constantine Copronymus. The found image was described by the witness of the events, John Skylitsa. Its text was understood for quite a long time as a description of a recension identical to that of the Novgorod icon “The Sign”, however, modern researchers have made a more accurate translation, from which it follows that the Mother of God holds a mandorla with the Divine Infant in Her hands. This is how Nicopeia, known since pre-iconoclastic times, was found. A similar Sinai icon of the 7th century has survived to this day. The role of this edition, according to Academician N.P. Kondakov and V.N. Lazarev, resonates with the role that the Novgorod shrine is called upon to play - the icon of Our Lady of the Sign. Let's note how accurately our ancestors gave the name to the image! The miracle is inextricably linked with this icon. Especially for Novgorodians. Miraculously, they received help from her during the siege of the city by the Suzdal people. In 1356, the fire that broke out in the church subsided after a prayer service in front of this icon. In 1611, the Swedes were thrown out of the Znamensky Cathedral, trying to rob it. Relatively recently, many of those present witnessed a celestial phenomenon: on August 15, 1991, when the icon was transferred from the museum, where it had been stored for a long time, to the Novgorod diocese, a rainbow surrounded the golden dome of St. Sophia Cathedral with a ring, and then began to rise and dissolved in a clear, without a single cloud, sky.In conclusion, we recall that the word "miracle" is derived from the verb "chuti" - that is, "hear, feel." God, considering human nature, for the salvation of His people, speaks to them with the help of signs. As long as we “feel” the omnipresence of God and the universal protection of the Mother of God, we can hope for Her intercession and help in sorrows. And through Her image of the “Sign” the luminous grace of God will continue to descend upon us.
Cit. on: Smirnova E.S.. Novgorod icon "Our Lady of the Sign": Some questions of the Theotokos iconography of the XII century. // Old Russian art. Balkans. Russia. SPb., 1995. S. 289.
The Novgorod Icon of the Mother of God “The Sign” is one of the most revered among our people. This is the main shrine of the Russian North.
Icons of the “Sign” type appeared on Russian soil very early, and they began to be called so after a miracle that occurred in Novgorod in 1170.
It was a time when Russia was torn apart by civil strife. The united regiments of the Russian princes moved to free Novgorod in order to conquer it. All Novgorodians prayed day and night for the deliverance of the city, Archbishop John of Novgorod, while praying before the image of our Lord Jesus Christ, heard a voice: “Go to the Church of the Holy Savior on Ilyina Street, and take the icon of the Holy Mother of God, and put it on the prison against the military.”
Having served a prayer service in the Church of the Holy Savior, Archbishop John, in the presence of those praying, raised the icon of the Mother of God to the city wall. When the regiments that surrounded Novgorod launched an attack and showered the defenders with a hail of arrows, one of them hit the holy face of the Most Pure One. And the icon turned to face the city, and holy tears flowed from the eyes of the Mother of God, watering the vestments of the archpastor. “O great and glorious miracle! They are not tears, but a merciful sign, ”the chronicler exclaims.
So the sign (sign) was given to the besieged that the Queen of Heaven prays before the Son for the deliverance of the city. At the same moment, an incomprehensible fear seized the attackers, and the Novgorodians began to pursue the enemy, who had taken flight.
Vladyka John established a celebration in honor of the icon on December 10. At the end of the XV - beginning of the XVI century. the miraculous image received the name "Sign" (meaning "a sign of God's mercy"). It was widely revered in subsequent centuries, becoming a common Russian shrine. The “Sign” icon is a strictly frontal half-length depiction of the Mother of God, raising her hands in prayer (the iconographic type “Oranta”). On the chest of the Mother of God is a medallion with the image of the blessing Infant Christ. On the other side of the icon are saints (either Peter and Anastasia, or Joachim and Anna - the inscriptions with their names have not been preserved), represented by those praying to the image of Christ. The icon has been restored many times over the centuries. From painting of the XII century. only fragments of the blue clothes of the Mother of God on the front side and images of saints on the back have been preserved.
In 1352, through prayers before this icon, those affected by the plague received healing. In gratitude for the innumerable graces and good deeds given by the Mother of God, the Novgorodians built in 1356 the Church of the Sign Holy Mother of God where the miraculous icon was solemnly transferred. This temple later became the cathedral of the Znamensky Monastery.
In the middle of the XV century. in Novgorod, the icon “The Battle of Novgorodians with Suzdalians” was painted, which served as a model for other icons painted on this topic. Experts compare this image with the "Praise of the Sign", created by Hieromonk Pachomius Serb. In honor of the icon of the Mother of God "The Sign" two canons were written. The first was compiled around 1140 by Hieromonk Pachomius Lagofet, who came to Russia from Athos.
"Sign" from the church in Dubrovitsy
"Sign" from the church in Dubrovitsy
During the years of Soviet power, the icon "The Sign" was kept in the Novgorod Museum, at present it is in the Novgorod St. Sophia Cathedral, where divine services have been resumed. During the XII-XIX centuries. numerous copy-lists were made from the icon, widely revered throughout Russia; the most famous of them: Abalatskaya (the main shrine of Siberia), Tsarsko-selskaya (in the Znamenskaya Church of Tsarskoye Selo; it was considered a family shrine of the Romanovs), Seraphim-Ponetaevskaya (the main shrine of the women's Seraphim-Ponetaevsky monastery).
In the Church of the Sign of the Most Holy Theotokos of the Dubrovitsy estate, there is an icon painted about 150 years ago. This image is especially revered by parishioners: weekly prayers are served before the icon with the reading of an akathist. Looking at the holy icons of the Heavenly Intercessor, believers ask for mercy and generosity, intercession for salvation and sending peace to our country and the whole world.
Pray pray for healing from blindness, cholera. They also pray for the cessation of disasters, for protection from attacks by enemies, from fires, for protection from thieves and criminals and for the return of the lost, for deliverance from the plague, for the pacification of the warring and for deliverance from internecine strife.
The image of the Mother of God, whose name is “The Sign”, is a portrait of the Queen of Heaven, who sits and raises her hands in prayer, and on the chest of the Mother of God, against the background of an oval shield, you can see the blessing Divine Infant, referred to as Spas-Emmanuel. This image of the Mother of God is attributed to one of Her first icon-painting images. In the tomb of St. Agnes in Rome there is an image of the Mother of God, who raises her hands to heaven in prayer, and the Infant sits on Her lap. This image is dated to the fourth century. In addition, there is also the most ancient icon of the Mother of God "Nicopeia" from Byzantium, dating from the sixth century, depicting the Mother of God seated on a throne and holding with both hands round shield, where you can see Spas-Emmanuel. The images of the Mother of God, which people remember under the name "Sign", appeared on the territory of Russia during the 10-12 centuries, and such a name was given to them after a miraculous sign from the Novgorod image occurred in 1170.
In this year, the combined forces of the specific Russian princes, led by the son of the Suzdal prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, concentrated their power near the walls of the city of Veliky Novgorod. All that was left for the inhabitants of Novgorod was to bow down in prayer and hope for God's grace. Day and night they sat, bowed down in prayer, crying out to the Lord not to leave them. One day, on the third night, Archbishop Elijah of Novgorod heard a wonderful voice that told him to go to the Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, which was located on Ilyina Street, and bring the icon of the Most Holy Mother of God from there and take it to the city walls. However, when the image was transferred, it happened that the enemy arrows launched a wave of arrows into the procession, and one of them was destined to pierce the iconic face of the Mother of God. Her eyes began to shed tears, and the image turned to face the city. After this sign of God, the enemies were seized with unthinkable horror, they began to attack each other, after which the inhabitants of Novgorod, encouraged by God's blessing, bravely rushed into battle and won.
In the name of this wondrous patronage of the Queen of Heaven, Archbishop Elijah immediately decided to establish new holiday in honor of the Sign of the Mother of God, which to this day is celebrated by the entire Russian church community. Hieromonk Pachomius Logothete from Athos, who was at the solemn feast in honor of the icon in Russia, created 2 canons for this feast. Some images of the Sign from Novgorod, with the exception of the Mother of God with the Eternal Child, also describe the wondrous events that took place in 1170. For 186 years after the sign, the miraculous image was kept in the same unchanged Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyina Street. In 1356, the construction of the Cathedral of the Sign of the Most Holy Mother of God was deliberately established for the icon, which was located in Novgorod, and which later became the cathedral of the Znamensky Monastery.
Innumerable copies of the image of the Sign are famous throughout Russia. Many of them showed their miracles in local churches, and they were named territorially after the place where divas appeared. Such copies of the image may include the images of Abalatskaya, Kursk, Seraphim-Ponetaevskaya and others.
The term "Sign of the Most Holy Mother of God" is used in church language to refer to two cases: as established type image of the Mother of God and how Orthodox holiday this image celebrated on December 10 in Russia. It is from here that the double name of the festival in Russian came from. Orthodox calendar modern style: “[Honoring] the image of the Mother of God, which is called the “Sign”. The Sign of the Most Holy Mother of God that happened in the city of Novgorod in 1170.
Thus, the festival was established in the name of one of the moments of bloody and fratricidal civil strife in a divided Kievan Rus when one prince fought with another, and they all called for the help of Christ and the Mother of God! These incessant wars continued to deplete the state, and were extremely beneficial for the troops of the Mongol-Tatars, who, one after the other, defeated the regiments of unintelligent half-pagan princes who did not want to make concessions to parochial ambitions and unite even for a common goal in order to defeat this danger. By founding this festival, during the celebration of which it is remembered how Christians should not behave in any case, the Church made it a warning to all future generations. Alas, this lesson was not enough for people, and the Mother of God was forced to allow in the first half of the 17th, and especially in the twentieth century, so many terrible “signs” that the eyes of man had not yet seen.
