Quadripartite icon with Crucifixion

This icon features four main images surrounding the Crucifixion. The upper left corner shows the beheading of St. John the Baptist and his severed head being presented to Salome on a charger. The upper right quarter contains Christ’s Descent into Hades, the Resurrection, the arrival of St. Dismas (the Good Thief) at the entrance to Paradise, and the post-Resurrection appearance of the Lord Jesus to seven of his disciples at the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-23). At lower right is an image of the Mother of God, “Soothe My Sorrows.” The scroll held here by the infant Christ says, “Judge righteously; each show mercy to one another; do not offend widows and orphans, and do not keep malice in your heart towards your brother.” In the lower left corner, seven saints are shown reverencing the crucified Christ. They include Saints Joachim and Anna (parents of the Virgin Mary), St. Theodosia, St. Justinia, and St. Cyprian of Moscow. God the Father appears at the top of the icon and two family saints—the Prophet Moses and St. Theodosia—appear at its extreme left and right. An inscription on the back of the icon bears a date of 1897 and says, “This holy icon was painted in the town of Izmail by Ivan Petrov on the 13th day of the month of May.” Izmail is located on the Danube River in what is now southwestern Ukraine. In 1897, it was situated on Russia’s far southwestern boundary.