Theotokos - The Virgin and Child
Hagia Sophia, 537 A.D.

Theotokos is how she was known at that time, the one who gave birth to God. That is what we mean when we pray, Holy Mary, Mother of God. This beautiful and ancient mosaic is from the Hagia Sophia, which was the great church of Christendom for a thousand years. Finished in 537 by the Emperor Justinian, it was the jewel of Byzantium and the center of Eastern Christian worship until the city fell into Muslim hands in 1453.

The blue of Mary's mantle is an ancient tradition. And the Savior is in gold. Of her being the God-bearer, that was a theological quarrel in the ancient Church, and it involved considerations of the nature of the Christ. Devotion to Mary, which exists in the Gospels, was increasing in the early centuries of the Church, and the issue of her nature was largely settled by the time the Hagia Sohpia was built. So the title is a declaration of who she is.

This beautiful piece of art can be a touchstone for you of the deep traditions of Christendom, of the uninterrupted centuries of our Church, "the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth." (1 Tim 3:15)

** IMPORTANT ** There is a white border around the image! The image is smaller than the paper! Sizes below

- 5x7" or 8.5 x 11" or 11x14" or 13x17" acid-free paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer
- Above story of the art
- Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

** IMPORTANT ** There is a blank border all around the image of about .5" for 5x7, 1.3" for 8.5x11, 1.6" for 11x14, and 1.75" for 13x17". All Approx! The white space around picture means the image is smaller than the paper. It gives the framed picture a matted look without using a matt.

Thanks for your interest!

Thanks!
Sue & John

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art.