Saint John is depicted half-length with a staff in his right hand. His left hand is at the waist and holds a scroll which states: : Μετανοεῖτε, ἤγγικεν γὰρ ἡ βασιλεία τῶν [οὐρανῶν] ‘Repent ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand’. (Matthew 3:2). The inscription on either side of his head identifies him as Άγιος Ιωάννης Πρόδρομος – Saint John the Forerunner.

He is depicted against a blue ground with a gold nimbus, inscribed with punches. John is depicted in the traditional attire of a desert ascetic. He wears a shaggy dark red undergarment, thought to be the fur mantle of Elijah, a reference to his appellation as a new Elijah (Matthew 11:44) with a green himation.

The dark blue background of our icon is a feature characteristic of other eighteenth century icons from Mount Athos. John the Baptist is the ideal of monastic life, ‘the New Testament model of the Byzantine monk, his presence was a ‘persuasive summons to monastic discipline’ (Weyl-Carr, 2012).

This icon was painted at a time of intense debate and spiritual rivalry within the church, the drama of which was largely played out on Mount Athos. The period was regarded as a highpoint of scholarship on the Holy Mountain. (Cavarnos). On Athos, the Kollyvades group (also known as ‘Neo-Hesychasts’) were concerned with fidelity to the traditions of the church and a return to a Eucharistic-centred spirituality preached by Hesychasts in the fourth century. They were particularly concerned at the rarity of the celebration of the Eucharist. They were alarmed at the influence of Western enlightenment on Greek culture and believed that the only way to regenerate the Greek speaking peoples was to rediscover Patristic theology, the Orthodox liturgical life, and the practice of frequent communion (Ware, 1993).

Bibliography

Annemarie Weyl Carr. Imprinting the Divine, Byzantine and Russian icons from the Menil Collection. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2012. p. 52

Constantine Cavarnos. Orthodoxy and Philosophy. Belmont: Institute for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, 2003. p. 128

Timothy Ware. The Orthodox Church. 2nd ed. New York: Penguin Books, 1993. pp. 99–100.