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Holy Shroud of Jesus Christ |
As a rule, an oklad covers up the entire icon, with the exception of several parts, such as faces, hands, and feet. An oklad is more than a decoration and a shield against sunlight and mechanical damage. It symbolizes one's gratitude to Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, or the saint for their help. Each material used for making an oklad has its symbolic meaning: gold symbolizes God's grace, silver stands for purity of the soul and holiness, whereas gems point at spiritual virtues.
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Tenderness Icon of the Mother of God (of St Seraphim and Diveevo) |
The tradition of making oklads has a centuries-long history. In fact, the first oklads appeared in the Ancient Russia as early as in the 11th century. Making oklads – covering icons – is typical of the Orthodox tradition as a whole but has become the most popular with the Slavic peoples.
Each oklad is unique and is made by hand for a specific icon. Precious oklads and icon covers produced in the icon setting workshop of St Elisabeth Convent are made of metals and textiles. The following materials are used to create the beautiful oklads: metals (tin foil,copper, brass); textiles (brocade, velvet, decorative fabrics); semiprecious stones (amber, onyx, carneol, amethyst, garnet, etc.); high-quality beads made in Japan and the Czech Republic; cannetille; Swarovski strasses; lace.
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| Image of Christ Not-Made-By-Hands |
The icons in oklad made by the artisans who work in the icon setting workshop of our Convent are exceptional because our icon painters paint the entire icon, not just the visible parts (hands and faces). This is why the oklad can be later removed if need be.
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