Saint Catherine

The Story Behind This Icon: Saint Catherine lived in the late 3rd century, in Alexandria, Egypt. Born into a wealthy and powerful family, Saint Catherine was also remarkably intelligent and beautiful. She was raised Christian in secret by her mother. During an especially large pagan festival, Saint Catherine was inspired by the Christian martyrs sacrificing their lives for their faith and went to the ruler of the state, Maximinus, to proclaim her Christianity. Maximinus was charmed by Catherine’s beauty, so he tried to convert her to paganism by bringing 50 of the states wisest pagan men to sponsor a debate. He wagered that if Catherine lost a single one of the disputes, she would have to convert; but she didn’t. She won every debate, and Maximinus resorted to tempting her with riches to convert. After she refused, she was jailed and tortured on a spiked wheel which miraculously broke sending blades flying in all directions and wounding the soldiers. Eventually, she was beheaded and her body was carried from a flight of angels to Mount Sinai. Saint Catherine's feast day is celebrated on November 25. *** This icon of Saint Catherine is reproduced, with permission, from the authentic icon painted by the monks in the Cell of St. John the Theologian Holy Monastery of Koutloumousiou in Mount Athos, Greece. This icon is part of our collection “Icons from Mount Athos”, which features all icons from the Cell of St. John the Theologian. This icon is made of solid, natural limewood (Tilia) that has been prepared by hand using traditional methods and organic materials. The background consists of 22 Karat gold leaves that were meticulously applied by hand, piece by piece.   All of our icons are reproduced according to museum print standards and are authentic replicas of Holy Icons from Mount Athos and elsewhere.  Learn more about how our Holy Icons are made here.