Icons are
painted as windows into Heaven, and therefore to show the Heavenly, rather than
earthly, reality. Nevertheless, Icons are made of the people we love: of the
heroes of the faith who are remembered and whose earthly lives are considered
instructive and worthy of imitation. Therefore it is natural that, as well as
depicting them in a stylized “spiritual” way, the Saints are also depicted as
recognizable people, with distinct features. This guide is just a brief
description of how the Holy Apostles are depicted in Icons, so that they can be
more easily recognized when encountered in churches, monasteries, or wherever
else an icon is found.
St. Peter
The fiery
and impulsive Leader of the Twelve, Peter is easily recognizable by his white,
short, curly hair and beard. He is often shown holding a scroll, which may have
words taken from one of his Epistles written upon it. In some icons he may also
be shown with keys hanging from his belt, a reference to the words Jesus said
to him: “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and
whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever
thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” He is often found in Icons
with St. Paul, who were both martyred in Rome, holding together the Church, and
showing their shared pre-eminence among the Apostles.
St. Paul
Though
not one of the original Twelve, St. Paul has always been known as an Apostle
(literally meaning “one who is sent out”), and moreover a leader of the
Apostles. As such, he is often shown in Icons of the Apostles, including the
one at the top of the page. Paul is always depicted with brown hair and beard
tapering to one or two points. He is balding with a high forehead (signifying
great wisdom and learning) but with a tuft of brown hair in the centre. He is
often shown carrying a large Gospel book, an affirmation of the number of
epistles he contributed to what became the New Testament. In addition, the
Evangelist Luke was a physician who followed St. Paul on his missionary trips,
so it is fair to say that Paul would also have had an influence upon the Gospel
of Luke and the Book of Acts.
St. John
There are
two common depictions of the Apostle John: as the “Beloved Disciple” and as
“the Theologian”. The former Icon is of the young Apostle John – the John who
rested upon the breast of Christ during the Last Supper. In any icon showing
scenes from the life of Christ (e.g. the Transfiguration, the Crucifixion) or
those depicted in the Acts of the Apostles (e.g. the Ascension or Pentecost)
then St. John is shown as the beardless brown-haired youth, little more than
sixteen years of age.
St. Matthew
Andrew,
the brother of the Apostle Peter, was formerly a disciple of St. John the
Baptist. Because of this, Andrew is depicted with long unkempt hair, in the
manner of the prophet he followed. This makes him one of the most recognizable
of Apostles when depicted in scenes showing Jesus’ earthly ministry. Andrew
holds a small scroll not to indicate he authored any famous works, but to
identify him as a preacher of the Gospel, “one who is sent out”, i.e. an
Apostle.
St. Bartholomew
Bartholomew,
also known as Nathaniel, is shown as a middle-aged man, with short beard and
hair. He is also shown holding the scroll of an Apostle. After his martyrdom,
St. Bartholomew has appeared to a number of people in vision and dream, so his
appearance can be deduced. He has appeared to St. Joseph the Hymnographer,
blessing him that he might be able to sing spiritual hymns, saying, “Let
heavenly water of wisdom flow from your tongue!” He also appeared to Emperor
Anastasius I (491-518) and told him that he would protect the new town of Dara.
St. Simon
Not to be
confused with St. Peter, who was previously named Simon bar-Jonah, the Apostle
Simon was from Cana, and is the bridegroom of the famous Wedding at Cana. He is
always shown with grey curly hair and beard, though with a higher forehead than
St. Peter.
St. Thomas
The
Apostle Thomas is most famously known as “Doubting Thomas”, on account of his
refusal to believe the accounts of the other disciples that Christ had risen.
Often maligned for this, in Orthodox teaching it is recognized that through his
initial doubts, Thomas came to confess Jesus Christ as “Lord and God” – a
greater confession of faith than any of the Apostles had previously uttered.
Sometimes this confession of faith is held in Thomas’ hands in icons depicting
him, though more commonly it is the scroll denoting his rank of Apostle that is
shown. The most striking thing about the Icons of Thomas is that he is shown as
a beardless youth, a teenager as John was. This is a consistent feature of how
Thomas is shown in icons, as in this Icon of Thomas touching the wounds of
Christ. The youthfulness of the Apostle Thomas is something worthy of
consideration when thinking about his “doubts”.
St. James, Son of Zebedee
There are
two Apostles named James. The son of Zebedee is the James often nicknamed “the
Greater” in the West. This is largely because among the Twelve he was part of
the “inner-circle” which also contained St. Peter and St. John. The Apostle
John is also the brother of James and together they were known as the “Sons of
Thunder”. James is shown with medium length brown hair and beard. Though often
difficult to identify by sight alone in Icons of the Twelve, he is recognizable
in the bottom-right of this Icon of the Transfiguration, which along with the
young John and curly-haired Peter, James was privileged to witness. He is
depicted as a young man (short beard, not white) in all icons, as he never got
to live to an old age, being martyred a little over 10 years after the
Resurrection.
St. Jude
Jude is
also sometimes called Levi or Thaddeus, and “Jude” is sometimes rendered Judas.
Nevertheless, he is not to be confused with the Apostle Matthew (also called
“Levi”), St. Thaddeus one of Jesus’ seventy disciples, or especially Judas
Iscariot. The author of the Biblical Epistle which carries his name, the
“Apostles’ Scroll” in his hand may sometimes show a quote from his own writing.
Otherwise, St. Jude is identified as a mature man with curly brown (sometimes
grey) beard and hair. As he was related to Jesus Christ through Joseph, husband
of Mary, the appelation “brother of the Lord” (or “adelphos” in Greek) may be
found on Icons.
St. James Alphaeus
The son
of Alphaeus and the brother of the Apostle Matthew, James is shown with brown
wavy or curly hair and a pointed beard. He is not to be confused with St. James
“Adelphos”, which means “brother of the Lord”. In iconography, the two Jameses
are easily distinguished, as “the brother of the Lord” is always shown in the
robes of a bishop, being the first bishop of Jerusalem. Here is an Icon of
James Adelphos.
St. Phillip
Holy
Tradition and Scriptures maintain that the Apostle Philip was well versed in
the Old Testament prophecies, and eagerly awaited the coming of the Saviour. He
immediately responded to the call of Jesus, and recognized him as the Messiah
(John 1:43); and subsequently led Nathaniel (the Apostle Bartholomew) to become
a follower of Jesus too. Therefore it is remarkable to come into contact with
icons of the Apostle Philip – who is always shown as beardless youth. Like the
youthfulness of Thomas, it is something worthy of consideration.
St. Matthias
Matthias
is the disciple of Christ who replaced Judas Iscariot as one of the Twelve
Apostles after the latter’s betrayal and suicide. His appearance in icons is
entirely in keeping with what is known about him. Schooled in the Law by the
Prophet Simeon, who received the infant Christ in the temple, Matthias was
already a man of maturity before becoming a disciple of the adult Christ. By
the time of his martyrdom in 63A.D., Matthias would be the elderly man depicted
in Icons of him.
Judas Iscariot
Whilst
Judas is obviously not a saint, and isn’t shown in icons of “the Twelve”, he is
nevertheless depicted in icons of the Last Supper or else kissing Christ in the
Garden of Gethsemane. In icons of the Last Supper he is easily recognizable as
the one dipping his hand into the dish, thus revealing his future betrayal of
the Lord. Often, the Apostles are not shown with halos in scenes prior to Pentecost,
but needless to say when they are shown with halos, Judas is conspicuous by not
having one.
Whatever
it may be worth – and it may be worth nothing – in Orthodox Iconography Judas
is almost always shown beardless, like John, Philip, and Thomas; thus, like
them, he was perhaps still a teenager at the time he betrayed his Saviour.
Source: https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2010/08/17/how-to-recognize-the-holy-apostles-in-icons/
CONVERSATION