An icon on a lime board with horizontal stiffeners . The workpiece is processed manually. A gold background is first applied to the prepared primed surface, followed by an icon image and a protective varnish. Potal (a substitute for gold leaf) is used to gild the background, and pigment paints are used for the image.

A fabulous icon of Saint Elena, Queen of Serbia  (1225-1314)

Saint Helena is a very interesting case in Serbian hagiography. Being the wife of the Serbian ruler, she was French and Catholic by birth and belonged to the famous family of Charles I of Anjou, King of Sicily and Naples. That is why, in the Serbian tradition, the name of Elena of Anjou is now fixed for her. Around 1250, she was married to the faithful Serbian king Stefan Uros I, with whom she lived in marriage for 30 years. Two sons, born in a marital union, became famous rulers of the Nemanich dynasty and were also glorified in the face of saints: kings Dragutin, in monastic Feoktist, and Milutin. Researchers report that Elena had another son Stefan and two daughters, one of whom died in infancy, and the fate of the second, named Brncha, was not particularly reflected in sources and legend.