A strong image of St. Nicholas of Mozhaisk shown holding a City of Mozhaisk in one hand and sword in the other flanked by the Virgin and Christ in roundels and below his Birth and St. Nicholas becoming a Deacon. (When the Tartars besieged the town of Mozhaisk (between Moscow and Smolensk) in the 14th century, the inhabitants went to the Cathedral of St. Nicholas and prayed to him for help. St. Nicholas appeared above the Tartar army waving a sword and the enemy fled in terror. The iconography of St. Nicholas, protector of the city of Mozhaisk stems from this period.) Russian icon, early 18th century, (37 x 31½ cm).