Saint George is riding a white charger and wears Roman military garb with a billowing red cloak. In his right hand, he holds a spear which divides the icon diagonally. On the bottom register of the icon, we can see the dragon before a dark cave, the spear piercing its mouth. The story goes that the people of the city had offered sheep, then men, then finally their own children, chosen by lottery, to keep the dragon at bay. Finally, the king and queen’s daughter was chosen. To the right of the icon, we see a stylised representation of the city with the princess’s parents watching from the battlements. The princess stands before the gates of the city, watching the dragon being slayed by George’s hand.

Tradition tells us that St George was a Cappadocian Greek who served in the Roman army and was martyred during the persecutions of the Emperor Diocletian. The spear in his right hand makes a diagonal from top left to bottom right. St George is the most famous of the military-martyr saints in the Greek tradition. His cult in Christianity is first documented in 323 though scholars have never accepted any evidence as reliable concerning his existence. He belongs in the realm of mythology and mystical allegory.