Russian school, 19th century. "John the Sufferer, or Ioann Pecherskiy. Tempera on panel. Measurements: 31 x 26 cm. John the Sufferer, or Ioann Pecherskiy, was a monk of the monastery of Kievo-Pechersk, also known as the Monastery of the Caves. With his life he gave an example of hard struggle and victory over his lusts. In order to overcome the lust of the flesh, the saint underwent many feats: for almost thirty years he was in seclusion, exhausting his body with fasting, vigils and heavy chains. It was all in vain, so the saint buried himself up to his chest in the cave of the Venerable Anthony for the whole of the Fortieth. With God's help and his firm will, the saint was freed from his tormenting passion on Easter night and received a gift from God to help others in similar temptation. The icon of interest depicts precisely this passage from the life of the monk Ioann. It is a canonical image, the monk painted full-length, with half his body buried under the earth. He is naked with his hands folded, holding the cross, the symbol of his strong faith. He is surrounded by two saints, on the left of the image is the venerated saint Moses of Hungary, a monk of the Monastery of the Caves, who lived in the monastery about a hundred years before the monk Ioann. On the right is the martyred saint Timofey, whose shoulders are covered with the mantle, a symbol of martyrdom. In the upper register, in the form of a separate image, is a depiction of the Mother of God Odighitria.