Icon

Ethiopian Orthodox · Mid-17th century

Devout individuals have commissioned icons (wood panel paintings) as gifts to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church since the 15th century. The icon was believed to carry the peoples' prayers for mercy and healing directly to the depicted saint--most often Mary with the infant Christ. The archangels, Michael and Gabriel, stand next to Mary, and Saint George often rides a white horse on the opposite panel. Small icons may have been worn around the neck suspended in cloth or leather bags or by a cord through a wood cylinder.