Azov icon of the Mother of God

 

There is no information about this icon in literature. The appearance of this icon is apparently linked with the 17th-century Russo-Turkish wars and the war on the Sea of Azov in 1735-1739. Its appearance may be dated from the 1740's. The icon included in this album is probably the original and not a copy, for the destiny of the original is unknown. Shown in the center of the icon is the Mother of God with a double-headed eagle (state emblem of the Russian Empire) in the background and in its bottom left corner is St. George the Victorious slaying the dragon symbolizing the Ottoman Porte (Turkey). On either side of the Most Holy Theotokos are saints praying for the Russian land and at Her feet are Russian warriors, in the bottom part of the picture are the liberated and saved Russian fortresses and towns on the Sea of Azov. There is no special feast day in honor of this icon.