Axion Estin: Greek Orthodox Icon of the Mother of God

Greek Orthodox icon “Axion Estin,” or “It is Truly Meet,” is one of the holy images that are popular among Christians. They pray with the icon of Axion Estin for protection and ask for salvation before Christ. The feast day of Axion Estin is celebrated on the 24th of June.

History of appearance of Axion Estin icon

The first Greek Orthodox icon “It is Truly Meet” is dated from the 10th century and is stored in the temple in Karyes. The city features the first in this area temple named after the Dormition of the Mother of God. There are lots of miraculous icons in the church, and the icon of Axion Estin is one of them.

The history of the appearance of the miraculous icon “Axion Estin” relates to Mount Athos. Close to the skete of Andrew the Apostle, near the city of Karyes, there lived a young monk and an old monk. One day, the old monk went to the nearest monastery and left the young one alone. In the night, somebody knocked on the door. The monk welcomed the guest and gave him food and drink. When they started to pray and sing psalms, the guest said that there was another text of “More honorable than the cherubim…” in his homeland. When he sang his version of Psalm, the image of the Mother of God in front of him shined bright and gave peace and joy to the soul.

The monk asked his guest to write down the text of the prayer “Axion Estin.” In the absence of writing instruments, the stranger wrote it down with his finger on the stone. Before leaving, he introduced himself as the Archangel Gabriel.

Greek Orthodox icon “Axion Estin.” Iconography   

Greek Orthodox icon “Axion Estin” is a half-length image of the Mother of God with Christ Child in her hands. The arrangement of figures is reminiscent of the composition in the Eleusa type of icons. The Mother of God inclines her head toward Christ, touching His cheek.

The Virgin Mary is clothed in a tunic and a maphorion in traditional for her iconography blue and red colors. The Divine Child is usually dressed in a white tunic with a golden belt. In His right hand, He holds a scroll with the biblical prophecy text.

In the top part of the icon, there are often images of angels on the clouds. They kneel and hold the crown of the Mother of God.

Greek Orthodox icon “Axion Estin” is a tender, pathetic, and laconic image that is venerated by Christian believers around the world.