Description
Saint Cornelia, a martyr known from an early martyrology
The historical record for Cornelia is unusually brief. The Martyrology of Pseudo-Jerome, compiled in the fifth century, names a martyr Cornelia who died at Carthage with six companions during the persecutions of the later third century. Her commemoration is kept on March 31. Later accounts add a death by wild beasts, but that detail is not part of the earliest notice and should be treated as tradition. The same martyrology names other martyrs called Cornelia with even fewer details, so a responsible description avoids inventing family history, rank or a specific patronage.
Palm branch, scroll and small crown
The icon shows a young woman with a halo, a green palm branch, a closed scroll and a small jeweled crown or diadem. The palm is the clearest traditional attribute and identifies martyrdom as witness to Christ. The scroll can signify confessed faith or the Church's remembrance, but it is not tied to a known surviving text by Cornelia. The crown may be read symbolically as the crown of life promised to the faithful, not as evidence that Cornelia was a queen. The image gives visual form to a saint whose biography remains fragmentary.
Crafted on linden wood in Poland
Made to order in Poland on a double-primed linden wood panel, the image is printed directly onto the prepared surface and finished with decorative gold-tone metal leaf. A certificate recording the year of production and a wall hanger are included. This is a contemporary devotional icon, not an individually hand-painted work.
For unnamed witnesses and fidelity without invented detail
The icon suits a chapel, memorial space, women's community, parish room or home prayer corner. Cornelia offers a focus for prayer for persecuted Christians and for people whose faithful lives are known only through sparse records. Her very obscurity can encourage respect for countless witnesses not preserved in full biographies. The image supports remembrance and prayer; it does not justify presenting later legend as fact, assigning an unsupported patronage or promising protection.