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A silver icon gift is usually chosen for a day people remember: a baptism, a wedding, a name day, a move to a new home. Unlike most presents it does not wear out or go out of fashion. It takes its place in the icon corner, the family prays in front of it, and one day it may be handed on to the children.
This guide is practical. It covers why an icon makes a special gift, which image suits each occasion, which size to pick and what to look for in the description. For the general questions, such as whether icons may be given as gifts at all and what to say when you give one, see our article on which icon to give. Here we stay with silver-plated icons.
Why an icon is a special gift
An icon given with a prayer reminds the person of the giver every time they stand before it, and of the wish that came with it: peace in the home, God's help, the intercession of a saint. Few other presents carry that kind of meaning for decades.
A silver-plated cover gives the gift a sense of occasion. It suits a major event and sits well in a home icon corner next to icons painted on wood. Almost every icon in the series comes in a gift box or case, so there is no need to wrap it separately.
For a baptism
Godparents and relatives most often give an icon of the Guardian Angel, the angel given to a person at baptism who stays with them for life. The other custom is an icon of the saint whose name the child receives. If there is no icon of that saint to hand, the Guardian Angel or an icon of Christ is always right.
For a child's room the 8 x 11 or 13 x 18 cm sizes work well: the icon can hang above the cot and later move to the child's own prayer corner. More presents for the day are in our baptism gifts section.
For a wedding
An Orthodox wedding traditionally calls for a pair of icons: Christ for the groom and the Mother of God, most often the Kazan icon, for the bride. Parents bless the couple with these icons before the wedding, the icons are held during the service, and afterwards they become the heart of the new family's icon corner.
If the couple already has their pair, an icon of the Holy Family makes a fine present: the Mother of God, the Christ Child and St Joseph, an image of a family gathered around Christ.
Choose both icons of a pair in the same size and finish so that they belong together. Ready selections are in our wedding gifts section.
For a name day
On a name day the natural gift is an icon of the saint whose name the person bears. First check their baptismal name, which is not always the name in their passport. Then find the saint commemorated on their name day. If a name has several patron saints, our article on patron saint icons explains how to choose.
Our silver-plated icons include St Nicholas the Wonderworker, the Great Martyr George, St Spyridon of Trimythous, St Nektarios of Aegina, St Matrona and other saints. If the saint you need is not in the catalogue, write to us. Our guide to name day gifts has more ideas.
For Christmas and Easter
For the great feasts people give feast icons: the Nativity of Christ, the Last Supper, the Holy Trinity. Such an icon brings the feast itself into the home and suits any family. At Christmas a set is a good choice, with the feast icon accompanied by small icons of Christ and the Mother of God.
For a new home
The traditional gift for a new home is an icon of Christ, the Mother of God or the Holy Trinity, the images every icon corner begins with. If the household already has them, choose an image they lack, or an icon of St Nicholas, patron of homes and travellers. The large 21 x 28 cm size suits a housewarming: it becomes the central icon of the corner.
Choosing the size and finish
The size depends on where the icon will live:
- 6.4 x 5 cm: a small icon for travelling, the car or a desk, often given as a set of two, three or five;
- 8 x 11 cm: a personal prayer corner, a shelf, a child's room;
- 13 x 18 cm: the all-round size for a home icon corner;
- 21 x 28 cm: the central icon of a home, a present for a major occasion.
The finish varies too. Some icons come in a gift box, some in a case, some in a glass frame, some on a wooden base. A glass frame keeps dust off and is easy to hang on a wall; an icon with a stand goes on a shelf.
What to check before you buy
Before you add an icon to the basket, read its description:
- base: MDF or natural wood;
- finish: 999 silver applied by physical vapour deposition, on some icons combined with gilding;
- size: given in the name and in the specifications;
- packaging: gift box, case or glass frame;
- care: wipe the cover with a dry soft cloth, without water or cleaning products.
Every icon in the series is handmade and made to order for Andcross. If you would like the icon blessed, it can be taken to a parish church; our guide on how to bless an icon explains how.
To give an icon is to wish someone God's help and to show that you pray for them. Browse all our silver-plated icons by size and image, or see the ready sets for different occasions in our Orthodox gifts section. At checkout you can tick "This is a gift" and add a card with your own words.
