Saint Kyriaki is one of the many martyrs of the early Church, achieving the crown of martyrdom during the great persecutions of Emperor Diocletian. Saint Kyriaki was born in Nicomedia to devout Christian parents, Dorotheus and Eusebia. Since Kyriaki was born on a Sunday, her parents named her "Kyriaki" which means "Sunday" in Greek. From her childhood, Saint Kyriaki lived a live consecrated to Jesus Christ, refusing many suitors. One spurned suitor, a magistrate, denounced Saint Kyriaki and her family to the emperor as Christians. They were arrested and separated, while Saint Kyriaki was sent to Chalcedon for interrogation and torture. She was tortured terribly, being suspended by her hair, burned with torches and beaten. She endured her trials with prayer and peace, planting the seeds of faith in many who witnessed her trials. After the first day of torture, Jesus Christ appeared to Saint Kyriaki in prison and healed her wounds. The next day, the governor, seeing this, announced that the pagan gods had healed her out of pity and urged her to give thanks in their temple. When Saint Kyriaki was brought before the pagan temple, she prayed to God, and a sudden earthquake toppled the idols and shattered them. The governor blasphemed God and was struck by lightning, dying on the spot. Saint Kyriaki's trials continued, and eventually she was beheaded, perfected in martyrdom at the age of 21. May we all have such great faith as Saint Kyriaki. Here is our icon of Saint Kyriaki, where she holds the cross of martyrdom, bears youthful features, wears a chaste head covering and has a red robe wrapped around her, characteristic of her depictions. *** Thisicon is made of solid, natural Limewood that has been prepared by hand using traditional methods and organic materials. The background is comprised of 22 Karat gold leaves thatwere 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. *** This icon of Saint Kyriaki 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.
