Description
Saint Elizabeth of Hungary (1207-1231), also known as Elizabeth of Thuringia, is shown offering bread to a man in need. A Hungarian king's daughter and wife of Ludwig IV of Thuringia, she devoted her resources and personal labor to feeding the poor and caring for the sick. The scene makes a work of mercy the focus of this icon.
From court life to service in Marburg
Elizabeth was a wife and mother of three children before becoming a widow in 1227. Influenced by Franciscan spirituality, she later founded a hospital in Marburg and personally served its patients. Her charity involved direct contact with those she helped, not only donations made from a distance.
Why she carries bread rather than roses
A crown recalls her royal birth, while her green dress and red mantle frame a basket filled with bread. She holds out a loaf toward the man below her. This composition emphasizes feeding the hungry; it does not depict the traditional miracle of bread turning into roses. The halo identifies Elizabeth as a saint without obscuring the ordinary act of giving.
Made in Poland on linden wood
Art Christiana makes this icon to order on a linden-wood board with two coats of primer. The image is printed directly onto the prepared surface and finished with decorative gold-tone metal leaf (schlagmetal). A certificate bearing the production year and a hanging fixture are attached to the back.
The icon can mark a place of prayer in a parish charity office, a Franciscan setting or a home. It is also an appropriate gift for someone whose service involves food distribution, volunteering or care for vulnerable people.