Fountain of Life

This small Russian icon, barely the size of a postcard, may have been created as a portable pilgrim souvenir. It was first recorded in the Society’s possession in 1847 by Albert Way, who suggested that it may be the picture donated by Peter le Neve. Further to its mysterious presence in the collection is its ties to the cult of the Virgin Zoodochos Pege: a popular subject in post-Byzantine art, the cult originated at a sacred spring credited with healing properties.