In Orthodox culture, there are many different miraculous icons of the Mother of God. Some of the faces of the Virgin have an ancient history. One of these icons includes the images of the Mother of God of the "Life-Giving Source" type.
Every year, the Orthodox Church celebrates the Life-Giving Source icon of the Mother of God on the Friday of Bright Week. On this day, the rite of blessing water is performed in Orthodox churches. The history of the appearance of the icon of the Mother of God "Life-Giving Spring" dates back to the 5th century and is a reminder of the miracle of the healing of the blind man by the Mother of God at the source located near Constantinople. This amazing event was witnessed by the warrior Leo Marcellus, who later became the emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
When Leo passed by the source, he saw a blind man. The warrior went to the spring in order to get himself water and give water to the blind. Suddenly Markell heard a voice commanding him to scoop up water from the spring and not only give water to the blind man, but also put a wet bandage with water on the sick person's eyes. It was the voice of the Mother of God. Leo Markel fulfilled the command and the blind man received his sight.
When Leo took office as head of the great empire, he erected a temple in honor of the Virgin Mary near the source. The House of God was called the "Life-Giving Source". After the Muslim conquest of Byzantium, the temple was destroyed. The House of God was restored near the source only in the 19th century.
The very same image "Life-giving source" is a later "prototype" of the ancient icon of the Virgin of the "Sign" type. The ancient Blachernae prototype depicted the Mother of God at the source. Holy water flowed from the hands of the Virgin Mary. Initially, the icon "Life-Giving Spring" did not depict a healing spring. Later, the iconography included a bowl with holy water, as well as a source or fountain.
The earliest depictions of the Mother of God "Life-Giving Source" include the image found in the Crimea, dating back to the 13th century by historians. From the middle of the XIV century, images of the Mother of God "Life-Giving Spring" appear with a bowl and a healing spring located above it. In the 15th century, an image of the "Life-Giving Spring" type appeared on Mount Athos in the monastery of St. Paul. The Virgin and Child are depicted in a bowl.
In Russia, icons of the "Life-Giving Spring" type began to appear in the 16th century, when the custom came into practice to consecrate water sources at monasteries, dedicating them to the Most Holy Theotokos.
It is also necessary to say about other names of the icon, which have found their reflection in the Russian tradition. These include the names "Life-Giving Source", "Source" and "Life-Receiving Source".
