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Pectoral icon depicting Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker and the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, 18th century

Bronze casting

Height × Width: 6.5 × 4.5 cm Weight: 31.5 g.

Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker is one of the most beloved saints in the Orthodox world, represented according to traditional iconography with the Gospel book in his left hand and his right hand raised in a gesture of blessing. Venerated as the protector of the faithful, travellers, and those in need, he holds a prominent place in Russian popular devotion. Beside him are depicted the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus, protagonists of one of the most celebrated narratives of the Eastern Christian tradition. According to the hagiographic account, the seven young Christians took refuge in a cave during the persecutions of Emperor Decius, where they miraculously remained asleep for centuries, awakening as a testimony to the promise of resurrection and eternal life. The juxtaposition of Saint Nicholas and the Seven Sleepers gives the object a strong protective and apotropaic significance. This icon also belongs to the group of Russian Old Believer icons, produced in series from the 17th century onwards and characterised by a rigorous adherence to the canons of Byzantine tradition. These objects, often made of bronze and sometimes enriched with coloured enamels, were generally small in size and intended for private devotion. Their portability allowed them to be easily carried and, when necessary, concealed, thus responding to the religious needs of a community that, after the schism known as the *Raskol*, endured periods of persecution by the official Russian Orthodox Church.