Icon of the Mother of God of Vilnius

Commemorated on April 14 (also commemorated on February 15)

The Vilnius (Vilna) Icon of the Mother of God was written by the holy Evangelist Luke. For a long time it was in the family of the Greek emperors at Constantinople. In 1472 Sophia Paleologina, wife of Great Prince Ivan III, transferred the icon to Moscow.

In 1495 the Great Prince blessed his daughter Elena with this icon before giving her in marriage to Lithuanian King Alexander. The Church celebrates the transfer of this icon to Vilnius on February 15.

Later, the holy icon was placed in the church of St. John the Forerunner, in which Princess Elena was buried. Afterwards, the icon was transferred to Vilnius’s Holy Trinity Monastery.

The Vilnius icon is also commemorated on February 15.

By permission of the Orthodox Church in America (www.oca.org)