Icon "Saint Martyr Vera"

The icon shows a half-length, frontal image of Saint Martyr Vera in a white, belted chiton. Her chestnut hair is parted evenly, with curls falling to her shoulders. In her right hand she holds a four-pointed cross-crucifix, with which she blesses; her left hand is pressed to her chest. Around the saint's head is a halo, at the upper right of which is the inscription: "ST. MARTYR VERA" (in Church Slavonic). Yellow-brown tones predominate in the painting. The icon is painted on a panel and was set in a metal riza. On the reverse is an inscription (largely illegible): "[...] Martyr Vera [in colors... M. Eli... D...070]."

The icon was discovered during an ethnographic expedition to the village of Tsybivka, Krasnokutsk district, Kharkiv region, and entered the museum's holdings in 1977.

Legend: Saint Martyr Vera, together with her sisters Nadia and Liubov and their mother Sofia, lived in the 2nd century in Rome and suffered for the Christian faith by order of the Emperor Hadrian. Their mother Sofia raised her daughters in deep faith, naming them after the chief Christian virtues — Faith, Hope, and Love. The ruler Hadrian sought to force the girls to renounce Christ and offer sacrifice to pagan gods. The young sisters showed a fortitude beyond their years. Vera and her sisters were subjected to cruel trials and executed before the eyes of their grieving mother Sofia, who buried her daughters and died at their grave a few days later.