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The
Theotokos Hodigitria of Kaftoun
Entrance
of the Theotokos Monastery, Kaftoun, Archdiocese of Mount Lebanon.
Author anonymous,11th Century A.D.
Tempera on wood & endued (bilateral).
H / W: 111 x 80 cm.
This
Byzantine icon is of hieratic & expressive style comes from the Kaftoun
monastery, located just 10 km to the east of Botrys district, in Lebanon.
The locality & the monastery of Kaftoun are cited by the historians of
the 9th century; between the 11th and 13th
centuries the monastery had a great spiritual influence in the region. The
Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris and the British Museum in London possess
some liturgical parchments from this monastery dating back to the 13th
century and testifying to the flourishing liturgical life of the
Kaftoun monastery.
Until 1972 the icon was affixed to the iconostasis of the monastery's
chapel where it was venerated by pilgrims. During the Lebanese war
(1975-1992) the icon was stolen twice and recovered back.
It's currently exposed back for veneration at the monastery's church in a
special way exposing both written sides. |
The
Lord's Epiphany
of Kaftoun
The
Lord's Epiphany, Kaftoun,
Archdiocese of Mount Lebanon.
Author anonymous,13th Century A.D.
Tempera on wood & endued (bilateral, reverse side of icon above).
H / W: 111 x 80 cm.
The epigraphy
of the icon is written in three languages:
-
In
Greek, we find below the circle segment in the center, the main
inscription: "The Baptism", above Jesus' crucifix HALO:
"Jesus Christ". In the upper left corner abbreviated:
"The Prophet David" and in the upper right corner: "The
Prophet Isaiah".
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In
Syriac, on the open scroll that the prophet Isaiah holds in his hand,
we read a composed text (as it is normal for Syriac liturgical
tradition): "Thus the LORD has spoken: Wash yourselves, make
yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My
eyes. Therefore with joy you will draw water From the wells of
salvation." (Isaiah 1: 16; 12: 3).
-
In
Arabic, on the scroll held by David: "The sea saw it and fled;
Jordan turned back. The mountains skipped like rams, The little hills
like the lambs of the forest. What ails you, O sea, that you fled? O
Jordan, that you turned back?" (Ps 114 LXXVII) "The waters
saw You, O God, the waters saw You and were troubled."
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