Icon of Virgin Mary Pyrovolitheisa (She Who Was Shot) from Xenophontos Monastery on Mount Athos

Icon of Virgin Mary Pyrovolitheisa (She Who Was Shot) from Xenophontos Monastery

Icon of Virgin Mary Pyrovolitheisa (She Who Was Shot) from Xenophontos Monastery on Mount Athos
Icon of Virgin Mary Pyrovolitheisa (She Who Was Shot) from Xenophontos Monastery on Mount Athos

The miraculous Icon of the Virgin Mary Pyrovolitheisa can be found in the proskynetarion near the southern entrance of Xenophontos Monastery's new main church, specifically on the right column.

The Legend of the Defiant Bullets

During the era of Turkish dominion, a Turk fired several shots at the icon. However, the bullets ricocheted off the icon, fatally striking the shooter. These gunshot marks have forever imprinted the image, leading to its secondary name "She Who Was Shot".

Iconographic Depiction

The Virgin Mary is portrayed according to the Hodegetria iconography style. Christ is depicted face-on, blessing with His right hand, while His left holds an open scroll inscribed in Old Slavic: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; because He has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor". Dated to the latter half of the 18th century, the icon once boasted a woven metal halo adorned with semi-precious stones.