Russian Icon - Our Lady of the Unburnt Thornbush

The icon depicting the Miracleworking Madonna of Unburnt Thornbush has a unique iconography. The Virgin Mary with her Christ child holds the central position in this rose-shaped form that is like a Jungian mandala. The points of the eight-pointed “slava” (“Glory”) represent divine light and the Eighth day of Creation, the Day of Eternity. Eight angels in the “petals” of the rose represent the forces behind the elements of nature, the hidden powers that control the weather and relate also to the apocalyptic end of the world. The "Unburned Thornbush" icon was commonly venerated throughout Russia as a form of fire protection. It was used not only to ward off fire from a home but was also held up to stop a fire once it had begun.