Mother of the Burning Bushes (Russian; Neopaliomaya Kupinaya) , 19th century, Russian icon, gesso, gold, tempera, size 35 x 29 cm. Sometimes the Mother of God is shown in a burning bush and sometimes, inside an eight-pointed star formed of two quadrangles with acute angles and concave sides. One of the quadrangles is red, symbolizing the lire enveloping the bush, and the other—green, the natual color of the bush. In its center in a circle is the Most Holy Thetokos with the Pre-Eternal Infant and round Them are representations of the beasts mentioned in the Apocalypse—a lion, an eagle, and a calf, and archangels with their symbolic attributes: Michael (who is like God) with a staff, Raphael (God hath healed) with an alabaster, Uriel (light of God) with a sword of fire, Salaphiel (God's prayer) with a Censer, and Barachel (God's blessing) with a bunch of grapes. The Mother of God is holding in Her hands the Ladder symbolizing the path leading believers to Heaven. Sometimes the Mother of God is represented with a staff—a symbol of the Saviour, Who is called in hymns "the Rod of the Root of Jesse'—in Her hand. Feast days: September 4/17 and the sixth week after Easter.