Orthodox banners are procession icons that are sewn or painted on a fabric base, planted on a high pole with a crossbar, like a military standard. Banners are used in the Orthodox Church during religious processions.
Church Banner - is an imitation of the tradition of military banners, which are also used in parades and marches. The banners began to be actively used in the Byzantine Empire from the middle of the 9th century. From there, this tradition of using fabric-based icons during religious processions comes to Rus. The oldest examples of Ukrainian banners belong to the end of the 16th century. And already in the next century, we can see the flowering of Ukrainian icon painting on banners, in which we can distinguish two main areas: professional and folk.
Professional banners were painted by icon painters, for the churches in which they painted the iconostasis. In such cases, the images in the church and on the banners were designed in the same style. The folk trend in icon painting is characterized by a simpler image technique and an abundance of traditional floral ornaments around the icon on the banner. Iconography was also different - from images of great holidays to icons of local saints. There were also special funeral banners, which were ordered specifically for the funeral procession of representatives of the higher clergy or abbess of monasteries. Traditionally, Ukrainian banners have two cutouts below, which divide the lower edge of the banner fabric into three parts. It is rather exclusively decorative than a symbolic design element. The canvas, brocade or velvet was used as the basis for the banner. The holder for the banner was made of light, but durable wood, so that it was not difficult to carry during long processions. The banner mount was either rigid on forged nails or on a thick cord or rope. The banner stand was placed on the right and left at the iconostasis or near the lateral choirs.
Modern banners are mostly similar to each other and differ only in the color of the material and the form of embroidery. Icons are no longer written on them, but simply ready-made lithographs with images of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Nicholas are attached. These icons are made mainly in a picturesque style, are mounted in the center and framed around with embroidery. Nowadays, massive metal banners have also come into practice; however a procession with them is possible only around the church, due to their heavy weight.
If before you could buy church banners only in large monasteries, now you can buy banners directly from your home in the online store of Orthodox goods “Axios”. We guarantee the high quality of our products and their durability in operation. In our store there are banners of various sizes, design styles and price categories. Welcome!
