St. Nino Cross (Silver)

Solid Sterling Silver Dimensions: 11/16″ wide by 1 3/16″ high St. Nino of Cappadocia (4th century) was relative of Great Martyr George. After learning about the Christian faith, she began to pray unceasingly to the Theotokos asking for her guidance and blessing to travel to Georgia to reverence the Sacred Robe of the Virgin Mary’s beloved son, Jesus. The Most Holy Virgin heard her prayers and appeared to Nino in a dream, saying, “Go to the country that was assigned to me by lot and preach the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will send down His grace upon you and I will be your protector.” The blessed Nino was overwhelmed at the thought of such a great responsibility and answered, “How can I, a fragile woman, perform such a momentous task, and how can I believe that this vision is real?” In response, the Most Holy Theotokos presented her with a cross of grapevines and proclaimed, “Receive this cross as a shield against visible and invisible enemies!” When she awoke, Nino was holding the cross in her hands. She dampened it with tears of rejoicing and tied it securely with strands of her own hair. (According to another source, the Theotokos bound the grapevine cross with strands of her own hair.) Upon this miraculous act Nino preached the word of God throughout Iberia. The grapevine cross has been preserved in the Sioni Cathedral in Tbilisi, Georgia. This 4th century cross design is considered the symbol of the Georgian Orthodox church. We commemorate St Nino on January 14th. For more detailed story of St. Nino please visit https://www.oca.org/saints/lives/2013/01/14/100191-saint-nino-nina-equal-of-the-apostles-enlightener-of-georgia