An icon, St. John the Baptist Angel of the Desert

St. John the Baptist was the last prophet of the Old Testament, the forerunner of Christ, whose imminent coming he foretold. His images are popular in the Eastern Christian tradition. On a par with the Mother of God, he is an advocate for mankind. The Prophet's grandeur was emphasised by Christ: “This is the one about whom it is written: I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you. Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist” (Mt 11:7-11). He was beheaded, as requested by Herod Antipas’s niece, Herodias, for the public accusation of her uncle of incest (Mt.14,10-12). From early centuries, John the Baptist was pictured as a long-haired, bearded ascetic wearing animal skin or a cloak and a doublet made of camel hair, blessing with his right hand and holding a scroll in his left hand. Together with the Mother of God, he stands at the throne of Christ in Deesis icons. In the Eastern Christian iconography, he also appears on his own, e.g. as the winged Angel of the Desert, with a vessel in his hands where the Child is placed to symbolise baptism and at the same time the Saviour's sacrifice. 

Teresa Bagińska-Żurawska https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9243-3967