Relief Triptych Depicting the Virgin Orans with Saints Anthony and Theodosius of the Caves

A unique monument of 15th-century history, visual art, and paleography, created to commemorate the restoration of the Dormition Cathedral under the last independent prince of Kyiv, Simeon Olelkovich, in 1470. At the center of the composition is an image of the Virgin Orans (55.63 × 40.05 cm). On either side are standing figures: on the left, Saint Theodosius (48.95 × 37.83 cm); on the right, Saint Anthony of the Caves (48.95 × 37.83 cm). The triptych bears an inscription:

"The Church of the Most Holy Mother of God of the Caves was founded on the ancient foundation during the reign of the great King Casimir by the pious prince Semen Alexandrovych, Prince of Kyiv, under Archimandrite Ioan."

According to researchers, the relief, carved from a solid slab of pyrophyllite slate, was originally located in the central apse of the Dormition Cathedral. During its restoration after the fire of 1718, it was removed, divided into three parts, and in the mid-18th century, installed above the entrance doors of the first tier of the newly built bell tower. The relief of the Virgin was placed above the western doors, while the reliefs of Saints Anthony and Theodosius were positioned above the northern and southern entrances, respectively. Saints Anthony and Theodosius symbolically point with their right hands toward the house of the Mother of God — the Dormition Cathedral — as if inviting us to enter the temple built through their efforts.