Troparion in Tone 4
O Tender-hearted defender, Mother of our Lord,
Intercede for us before your Son, Christ our God!
Save all who hasten to take shelter
Under your strong protection!
Defend, O Mistress, Empress and Lady,
All who in danger or misfortune,
Or weakened with the malady of many sins
Stand before Your holy Image
Praying with tears and humble mind,
Repentant heart and invincible hope.
Free them from all evil; give them the grace they need,
And save us all, O Virgin Mother of God,
For you are the divine refuge of your followers!
Kontakion in Tone 4
O all-blameless Virgin Mother of Christ God:
Your most holy soul was pierced by a sword
When you beheld your Son and God willfully crucified,
Therefore never cease to pray to Him, O all-blessed One,
That He may grant us remission of our sins!
Over the years a number of variants of icons
of Mary and Christ were created. The most popular new version in
Russia was Our Lady of Kazan, which was called "Kazanskaya"
there. The icon was found in a garden in 1579 in the city of Kazan
and therefore, all copies of the icon must be painted from that date
forward. The original icon was carried by Prince Pozharsky into
battle against the Poles and it began to take on a militantly
nationalistic reputation.
A special church dedicated to the icon was
built in Kazan in 1679, but the icon had been kept in Moscow since
the victory over the Poles and a copy was installed in the new
cathedral of Kazan. In 1821 the original icon of Our Lady of Kazan
moved again, this time to Saint Petersburg where it was installed in
the new Kazan Cathedral on Nevskii prospect in the heart of the
city. By this time the icon had become extremely popular and there
were nine separate miracle working copies of the icon around the
country.
By the middle of the 19th century the
original icon was encrusted in diamonds, massive emeralds and a gold
cover. In 1918 the icon was seized by the new Soviet Government and
transported to Moscow. It vanished enroute, only to turn up in New
York City, where it is in the possession of the Russian Orthodox
Church Abroad.
The two examples opposite are 150 years
apart. Although the drawing is similar, there are many differences
between the two icons, which shows the freedom that Russian artists
felt in dealing with traditional icon designs. There are slight
changes in the folds of the garments, but the most striking
difference is the coloration. In the lower icon the artist has
chosen a much warmer palate, including bright cinnabar for Christ's
robe. The painter has also used thin bright gold highlights over the
surfaces of the clothes of Mary and Christ which makes it very
decorative, but perhaps less spiritual. The modeling of the faces,
particularly of the Virgin is much harder and less subtle in the
later painting.
