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history of the holiday

The baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ, the story of which is very briefly described by all four evangelists (Matt. III, 13-17; Mark. I, 9-11; Luke. III, 21-23; John. I, 33-34), is the most important event evangelical history, marking the beginning of the public activity of Christ. If the Nativity of Christ marked the beginning new era mankind, the Baptism of the Lord was the event that finally drew the line between the Old and New Testaments.

As narrated in the Gospel, before the appearance of Jesus Christ to people, in the Jewish desert he baptized the people and preached coming soon Messiah the Forerunner Lord john, foretold by the prophet Isaiah in the form of "a voice crying in the wilderness": "Prepare the way of the Lord, rightly do His paths" (Matt. III, 3). The baptism performed by John the Forerunner over the people was a baptism of repentance and confession of their sins, in accordance with his inspired call: "Repent, the kingdom of heaven is drawing near" (Matt. III, 2).

The coming of the Messiah was promised Old Testament and the whole Jewish country was waiting for His coming, thanks to which many Jews took John for the Savior of the world as a man of pure life, who lived in the wilderness, wore clothes made of camel hair and ate what he found among the stones (Matt. III, 4). However, John himself testified to them that he was not Christ and baptized only with water, but that after him would come a Man, Whom he was not worthy to bear the boot. He is the Savior of the world, Who baptizes people with the “Holy Spirit and fire” (Matt. III, 11).

On the very day of Baptism, as the Gospel story says, “Jesus comes from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized by Him. John forbade Him, saying: I demand you to be baptized, and are you coming to me; And Jesus told him in a speech to him: leave it now: this is how it befits us to fulfill all righteousness. Then leave Him. And Jesus was baptized ascending from the water: and behold the heavens were opened to Him, and in the sight of the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming on Him. And behold a voice from heaven, saying: Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased ”(Matthew III, 17). Thus, the Lord clearly pointed out to John the Baptist and the people that before them the Savior of the world is Christ, according to the testimony of the Forerunner himself: “but who sent me to baptize with water, that speech to me: behold the Spirit descending over the Worthless and abiding on Him, that is baptizing By the Holy Spirit. And I saw and testified that this is the Son of God ”(John I, 33-34).

Immediately after the event of the Baptism of the Lord, which became the first manifestation of Christ to the people, several of his disciples, the apostles Andrew and Simon (Peter), Philip and Nathanael (John I, 35-51), were joined to Christ. Also, the Gospels of Matthew and Luke (Matthew IV, 1-11; IV, 1-15) tell about the forty-day fast of the Savior in the wilderness and His overcoming devilish temptations, which was the spiritual strengthening of Christ before the beginning of His preaching.

Establishing a holiday

The beginning of the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord, like the Nativity of Christ, dates back to the times of the Apostles, as evidenced by the mention of this holiday in the Apostolic Regulations and Rules. In the first three centuries of the celebration in the Churches of Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria and Cyprus - the feast of the Nativity of Christ was connected with the feast of Epiphany (January 6) under common name Epiphany. The celebration of the Nativity of Christ along with the Epiphany in some Eastern Churches lasted until the end of the 4th century, in others - until the 5th or even up to the 6th century. A perfect similarity in liturgical features these holidays. For example, both are preceded by Christmas Eve, with the same folk legend about strict fasting to the first star; also the rite of service on the eve of both celebrations and on the very holidays is exactly the same.

An important motivation in establishing this holiday was the desire of the pastors of the early Christian Church, according to St. Innocent of Kherson, "to protect believers from the delusion of some heretics who rejected the Trinity of the Divine"

(1). The event of the Baptism of the Lord, in their opinion, was an indisputable evidence of the Trinity of the Godhead. The feast got its name from the Epiphany because at the baptism of the Savior, "the appearance of all three persons of the Divine occurred: the Father from the opened heavens testified with a voice about the baptized son, and the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus in the form of a dove, thus confirming the Word of the Father" (2)

In ancient times, the feast of Epiphany was also a solemn day for the baptism of converts, which is why it was sometimes called the festival of lights, holy lights. These names indicate the effect of baptism, which consists in enlightening and cleansing the sinful nature of man. In connection with the custom of baptism on this day of the catechumens, the blessing of the waters became a distinctive feature of the holiday. Later, with the disappearance of the institution of the catechumens, this custom remained inviolable in the remembrance of the event of the holiday itself: "Paki is the same water," as it is written in the New Tablet, "on the day of the Epiphany of the Lord, besides those who were baptized, it was also sanctified for the commemoration of the baptism of Christ."

Spiritual meaning of the holiday

The baptism of the Lord in the sense of a spiritual understanding of this holiday is "the creation of the world anew, like the Nativity of Christ." “In this holiday,” writes the monk Gregory Krug, “the hundredth world is mysteriously created anew, and, as in the creation of the world, God touches and purifies and gives life to the watery nature. Christ plunges into waters to cleanse and revive them<…>"(3)

Just as the Spirit of God hovered over water during the creation of the world, in the sacrament of consecration of water the Holy Spirit imparts grace and power to the waters to generate life in the sacrament of baptism, to be water "flowing into eternal life" (4)

The very image of the Baptism of Christ the Savior became a pre-image and foundation of the mystical and grace-filled method of rebirth by water and the Spirit in the sacrament of baptism given after His Resurrection and Ascension. Here the Lord reveals Himself as the Founder of a new, grace-filled Kingdom, into which, according to His teaching, one cannot enter without baptism (Matt. 28, 19-20). The threefold immersion in the sacrament of the Church of baptism depicts the death of Christ, and the coming out of the water - the communion of His three-day Resurrection. Having been baptized by John, according to the Gospel words, Christ fulfilled “all righteousness,” that is, faithfulness and obedience to the Heavenly Father. By this, He gave an example to Christians of obedience to the will of God and humility, with which they must become like Christ, having received the grace of the sacrament of baptism.

Iconography

The origins of the iconography of the feast of the Baptism of the Lord go back to early Christian times. In the monuments of the IV-V centuries. such as the ampoules of Monza, the mosaic of the vault of the Arian baptistery in Ravenna, the plaque of the throne of Archbishop Maximilian, the baptized Forerunner Christ is depicted as a young beardless youth. In later monuments, in accordance with church tradition, the image of the Savior in adulthood is spread.

On many icons this holiday In imitation of ancient pictorial techniques, in the Epiphany scenes, artists placed the personification of the Jordan River in the form of a gray-haired old man sitting on the bank or in the river itself along with the personification of the sea, in the form of a floating woman, based on the text of the psalm: turn back ”(Psalm 113: 3).

Although the Gospel does not mention the presence of angels at the Lord's Baptism, their figures, starting from the 6th-7th centuries, are always depicted as standing on the opposite of St. John the Baptist the banks of the Jordan, usually occupying the right side of the composition. Most often, three angels are written here, bowing to Christ, and, like the receivers from the font, holding the covers on their hands. There are also options when angels fly to Christ from heaven, as it is presented in miniature from the Words of Gregory Nazianzen (XI century. State Historical Museum).

Since ancient times, a segment of the sky has been depicted above the Savior standing in the water, from which a dove descends to Christ - a symbol of the Holy Spirit and rays divine light... The mosaic located in one of the trumpets supporting the dome of the main temple of the Daphni monastery near Athens (second half of the 11th century), as well as in many book miniatures and icons, depicts the blessing right hand of the Almighty, symbolizing a voice from heaven. A similar image of the Epiphany is also present in the mosaic decoration of the Palatine Chapel in Palermo and the Church of St. Luke in Phocis (XII century).

Along with the laconic iconographic scheme, it was widespread in Byzantine and Old Russian art and more enriched with various additional details. So, in the fresco of the Church of the Savior on Nereditsa in Novgorod (1199) on the banks of the Jordan, people awaiting baptism are represented. One of them takes off his shirt, and the other person is depicted already floating on the water. It is also noteworthy that the figure of the Savior is not naked, as in some other monuments, but has a girdle. In the hand of St. John the Baptist is a scroll - a symbol of his sermon about Christ to the people. On the water, to the left of Jesus, an image of a cross is inscribed as a sign of the consecration of the world's waters. The same image of a cross on water, highlighted in red, is present on the 13th century Baptism of the Lord icon kept in the monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai.

In the National Museum of Serbia (Belgrade) there is an icon of the XIV century, which has a lot of details. A large crowd of Jews present at the baptism of the Lord is represented on both banks of the river, elders, youths, women, holding babies in their arms, stand out in it. In the upper part of the icon, there are two small nude figures sitting on the tops of hills and pouring water from vessels. These are the personifications of the legendary sources of Jora and Dan, during the merger of which the Jordan was formed, as reported in ancient legends - by Josephus and Blessed Jerome. In addition, at the feet of John the Baptist is depicted an ax, reminiscent of the martyrdom of the prophet, and on the left is the scene of his sermon. The main iconographic feature of the image is the image of the opening gates of heaven, as it is said in the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew III, 16), angels and Christ Emmanuel in the sky.

Researcher L.I. Lifshits notes that in the images of Baptism, artists in various ways introduced motifs reminiscent of the burial of the Savior and His Descent into Hell. So, images of Christ submerged under water with his head were associated with the burial, and with the Descent into Hell - the image of the Savior standing in Baptism at the foot, reminiscent, for example, in the frescoes of the Serbian monastery of Gracanica (1321), the trampled gates of hell.

The greatest attention in all the images of the Epiphany is attracted by the figures of the Savior and John the Baptist, laying the right hand on the head of Christ. This gesture passed into art from church practice. In the hymnography of the holiday, as in the icons, the theme of the Lord's acceptance of Baptism from His slave is accentuated: “how the slave will lay his hand on the Lord” (troparion of consecration of water). The posture of Christ is different. In almost all icons of the Epiphany, the Savior blesses with his right hand. In early monuments His figure is often presented strictly frontally; later on, images in a slight turn and movement, as if Christ takes a step, become the most popular, which corresponds to the Gospel text, where it is said that, having been baptized, Jesus “went up abiye from the water” (Matt. III, 16). This is how the Baptism is shown at the Vasilievsky Gates (XIV century. Trinity Cathedral of Alexandrov), tablet icons from the Sergiev Posad Museum and Sophia Cathedral(XV century).

Troparion, voice 4

In the Jordan, baptizing You, O Lord, / Trinity worship appears: / Parents are testifying to You, / calling Your beloved Son: / and the Spirit in the form of a dove is known in the word assertion: / Appear, Christ God, // and the world of enlightenments, glory to Thee.

Kontakion, voice 4

Thou hast appeared this day in the universe, / and Thy light, O Lord, is signified on us, / in the minds of those singing Thee: / Thou art come and Thou art, // unapproachable light.

Exaltation

We magnify Thee, / the Life-Giver of Christ, / for the sake of the now baptized flesh / from John // in the waters of the Jordan.

Notes:

(St. Innokenty of Kherson On the Great Lord's and Mother's Feasts. St. Petersburg 2005).
Christianity, Vol. 1, 1993, p. 290.
Monk Gregory Krug. Thoughts about the icon. S. 55-56.
In the same place. P. 56

Original taken from iov75 v Theology of icons. "The Baptism of the Lord" by Andrei Rublev

Before us 15th century icon "The Baptism of the Lord" belonging to the icon painter from the circle of Andrei Rublev... The icon is very laconic, it corresponds Gospel story about Baptism, showing not only the Baptism itself, but also the theological meaning of the holiday: on this day God appeared as One in three Persons: God the Son - Jesus Christ, God the Holy Spirit - in the form of a dove and God the Father as a voice from Heaven. "In the Jordan, baptizing you, Lord, Trinity worship appearing" as it is sung in the troparion of the holiday. Jesus Christ first appeared as one of the Trinity. And therefore the holiday is correctly called not Baptism, but Epiphany.
The peculiarity of the icon and its bewitching beauty are in the smoothness and special tenderness with which the Savior envelops both water and mountains; and how John the Baptist bows deeply before the Savior; and with what trepidation the Angels await Him on the shore, having prepared the swaddling clothes as recipients, and how tenderly the icon painter puts paints and gaps, making the image of the Baptism of Jesus transparent and tender. The warmth emanating from the icon is transmitted to those who are praying.
The icon has an emphasized vertical dimension. It is created at the expense of the river directed upward, and the mountains, the tops of which are tilted to the right, repeating the bow of John. The vertical is reinforced with a double diagonal movement from bottom to top. One diagonal - from the lower left corner to the upper right - ends with a river going into the mountains. The other - from the lower right corner to the upper left - runs from the lower ledge of the mountain, on which the Angel's foot stands, through the figure of John the Baptist. These diagonals intersect in the center - on the figure of Jesus Christ, making it the focus and heart of the image. The vertical line is strongly emphasized by the ray, in the center of which is the dove. Triple beam blue comes from a semicircle at the top of the icon, which symbolizes Heaven. He focuses on Jesus. It is God the Holy Spirit descending on the Son-God and at the same moment the voice of God the Father is heard: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased".

The image of Jesus Christ is central. His figure, although fragile and elongated vertically, is full of strength: all her members - chest, shoulders, arms, legs - are round and soft. The loins are girded, although in other versions Jesus is depicted naked. Softness is created by the smooth curves of the river, rhythmically repeating the figure of the Savior, washing it and lovingly carrying it over the waters. The figure seems to float in the air without touching the water.
The gorge, which contains the figure of the Lord, symbolizes hell, coffin and death. These are not random images. In the Sacrament of Baptism, when immersed in water, dies old man, and upon leaving it, a new one is born, denying Satan and all his deeds and taking an oath to serve from now on and forever and ever not to the devil, but to God. The icon painter, placing Jesus during Baptism in a cave, as in a tomb, shows precisely this meaning and image of the Sacrament of Baptism. The gorge is also an image of hell, into which Jesus descends in order to bring Adam and all the righteous of the Old Testament out of it.
On the left we see the low-bowed figure of John the Baptist. The stepped rocks put him high above the Savior and he is forced to bow low before Him in a blessing gesture. This hunchback emphasizes that a slave, unworthy even to untie the belt at the Master's feet, baptizes His Master, before whom he bows low as unworthy. The figure of John is generally very strange: his right hand is too long, baptizing Jesus, and too small, as if shortened, the left, the back is also very long ...
On the opposite bank there is a beautiful, festively flowery group of angels, although nothing is said about them in the Gospel. On different icons their number is different. There are four of them on this icon and this distinctive feature of this edition, filled with deep theological and philosophical meanings... All the angels wear blue-blue tunics. In front are two Angels in a low bow, on their hands magnificent clothes, like towels, into which the Baptized One will be received. They are receivers, ready to receive Him immediately as soon as He comes out of the water. These two Angels especially feel the solemnity of the moment. The third Angel, who is barely visible behind the backs of the first two, also with veiled clothes, but in a pose not as solemn as the first two.
But the fourth Angel stands out especially. His hands are covered, but he raised them to the sky in a prayer position and looks at the blue ray pointing to the Savior, to the dove descending in this ray - the Holy Spirit, and as if he is listening to the voice of God the Father coming from the Heavenly cloud. The whole Epiphany and theological meaning of the holiday lies in the image of this Angel. While all the rest - John the Baptist and three angels - are directly involved in the action of the Sacrament of Baptism, the fourth, the only one of them, contemplates the Manifestation of God - the Trinity of the Trinity. This Angel is painted in Divine blue tones, emphasizing its peculiarity, its greater connection with the nature and water of the Jordan than with human figures.
The icon is filled not only with the evangelical presentation of events, but also with elements of the Old Testament images, familiar from the psalms, and even with images of antiquity. So, in the river we see a gray-haired old man at the very bottom. This is an image of the Jordan River. And at the bottom right there is another person, swimming on two dolphins. This is the image of the sea. And together he and the other are visible images: "See the sea and escape, Jordan return back ...", indicating the prophetic image of the passage through the Red Sea, and the prototype of Baptism in the New Testament. The figurines themselves are an ancient heritage, because among the Jews, the image of a person was prohibited. This is also the personification of the two streams Iora and Dan, of which the Jordan River was formed at the confluence.

Epiphany; fragment of a three-part icon, 12th century, St. Catherine, Sinai

The Baptism Icon tells not only about the Baptism of Christ in Jordan from John the Baptist. The main "event" that the icon seeks to convey is the appearance of the incarnate Son of God to the world as one of the Persons of the Holy Trinity.

In the Baptism of Christ for the first time visible to all people who came to be baptized, God revealed himself as the Holy Trinity: God the Father spoke from heaven, the Son of God was baptized in the waters of the Jordan, and the Holy Spirit descended on the Son in the form of a dove.

And therefore on the icon we see in the center, in the waters of the Jordan, - Jesus Christ, above - Heaven, from Heaven comes down White dove- a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

Thus, “all truth” about which Christ speaks in the Gospel was fulfilled: those who heard the call of John the Baptist to repentance and were baptized with faith, confessing their sins, were given to see the fulfillment of prophecies - the manifestation of God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit to the world.

So a believer and pure heart sees God. Therefore, the event and the feast of Epiphany received another name - Epiphany.

Baptism of the Lord, fresco, 1668, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Trinity Cathedral, St. John the Baptist

The beginning of the XIII century. Monastery of St. Catherine, Sinai

Miniature Minology of Vasily II. Constantinople. 985 Vatican Library. Rome

We see John the Baptist depicted bowing to Jesus and laying his right hand on His head as a sign of baptism. And on the right bank of the Jordan there are angels who also bowed to Jesus Christ. They seem to be serving John the Baptist.

Jesus Christ in the waters of Jordan unites by Himself two “shores” of life: earthly (John the Baptist - man) and heavenly (angels). Likewise, through Jesus Christ and personal baptism we get the opportunity to join the spiritual, heavenly world.

Epiphany. VI century, Ravenna

Epiphany. 1001-1015, Georgia

Baptism of the Lord, Byzantium XI century, Imperial Menology, USA. Baltimore

Baptism of the Lord, St. Andrey Rublev, 1405 g

Epiphany. Serbia, Kosovo, Gracanica monastery, XIV century

In Jordan, we see two small figures: an old man - a symbol of the Jordan River and a female figure riding a dolphin - a symbol of the sea. These symbols came from Byzantine art: in ancient Greek, the word "river" is masculine, and "sea" is feminine.

The symbolic figures of the Jordan River and the sea refer to the words from Psalm 133: “The sea looked like it and ran, Jordan returned back,” which are repeated in baptismal hymns. Since the figures in the river are not real people, and symbols, they are shown smaller in size.

Baptism of the Lord, Fresco of the Church of the Savior on Nereditsa. 1199 Novgorod

Baptism of the Lord, second half of the 11th century. Athens, Daphni Monastery, Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Baptism of the Lord, XI century, Greece. Osios Lukas Monastery

Epiphany. Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, 15th century

Epiphany. Fresco of the Church of St. George in Staro-Nagorichan, 1316-17. Macedonia

Epiphany with the forthcoming saints. End XVIII- early XIX century. Rybinsk Museum-Reserve

Double-sided tablet icon, 2nd quarter of the 15th century. Sergiev Posad History and Art Museum-Reserve

Master Michael. Icon from the Annunciation Cathedral in Solvychegodsk. Beginning XVII century State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg

Since early Christian times, the fish has been depicted as an allegorical symbol of Jesus Christ. In ancient Greek ("ichthys"), this word represents a monogram of the initial letters of the name of Jesus Christ - Jesus Christ, the Son of God the Savior.

The third century Christian theologian Tertullian connects the fish symbol with the sacrament of Baptism: “We are small fish, led by our ikhthus (Jesus Christ), we are born in water and can only be saved by being in water”.

Shroud. 1580s. State Hermitage, St. Petersburg

Baptism of the Lord, modern icon

The baptism of the Savior. 1880s, Ivanov Andrey Ivanovich, State Tretyakov Gallery

Epiphany. Semiradsky Henry Ippolitovich, 1876

Baptism of the Lord (Epiphany). Nesterov Mikhail Vasilievich. 1891 Sketch of a composition for the baptismal Vladimirsky Cathedral in Kiev. State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg

Baptism. Polenov Vasily Dmitrievich. 1887–88

Icons of the Baptism of the Lord

Nesterenko Vasily Igorevich
Epiphany
Northern Tympanum of the Temple of the Savior

The Baptism of the Lord, or Epiphany, is so called because at the moment of the Baptism of the Savior, all three Persons of the Holy Trinity appeared: God the Father, God the Son, who was baptized in Jordan, and the Holy Spirit, who descended in the form of a dove.

Epiphany, with scenes of life
Malyganov Ivan Anisimovich (c. 1760 - after 1840)
Private collection of Yu.M. and L. D. Ryazanov, Yekaterinburg, Russia

Sinai diptych from the monastery of St. Catherine. Fragment

Baptism. (Matthew 3: 13-17 and parallels.) At the time when John the Baptist preached on the banks of the Jordan and baptized people, Jesus Christ was thirty years old. He also came from Nazareth to the Jordan River to John to receive baptism from him. John considered himself unworthy to baptize Jesus Christ and began to restrain Him, saying: "I need to be baptized by You, and do you come to me?" But Jesus answered him: “Leave now; for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness ”(Matthew 3: 14-15).

Second half of the 11th century.
Church of the Assumption of Our Lady, Daphne.
Mosaic in a trumpet

Then John obeyed and baptized Jesus Christ. After being baptized, when Jesus Christ came out of the water, the heavens opened up over Him; and John saw the Spirit of God, which descended on Jesus in the form of a dove, and the voice of God the Father was heard from heaven: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." The Epiphany is called a holiday because at the Baptism of the Lord she appeared to the world Holy Trinity(Matthew 3, 13 - 17; Mark 1: 9 - 11; Luke 3, 21 - 22). God the Father spoke from heaven about the Son, the Son was baptized by the holy Forerunner of the Lord John, and the Holy Spirit descended on the Son in the form of a dove.

Baptism. Transformation. Resurrection of Lazarus.
Mid-14th century.
National Museum, Belgrade.

In the ancient Church there was a custom to baptize the catechumens at the eve of the Epiphany, since Baptism is the spiritual enlightenment of people. The beginning of the feast of the Epiphany dates back to apostolic times. He is mentioned in the Apostolic ordinances. The testimony of St. Clement of Alexandria about the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord and the night vigil before this holiday has been preserved from the 2nd century. In the third century, on the feast of the Epiphany, conversations between the holy martyr Hippolytus and St. Gregory the Wonderworker are known. In the following centuries - from the 4th to the 9th century - all the great Fathers of the Church - Gregory the Theologian, John Chrysostom, Ambrose of Mediolansky, John Damascene - held special talks about the Feast of the Epiphany.

XI century. Greece. Osios Lukas Monastery

Venerable Joseph The Studite, Theophanes and Byzantium wrote many hymns for this holiday, which are sung even now during the service. Reverend John Damascene said that the Lord was baptized not because He Himself had a need for cleansing, but in order to “bury human sin with waters”, fulfill the law, open the sacrament of the Holy Trinity and, finally, sanctify “watery nature” and give us the image and example of Baptism.
from here

Coptic icons

Above the Savior standing in the water, from ancient times, a segment of the sky has been depicted, from which a dove descends to Christ - a symbol of the Holy Spirit and rays of "threefold light". In many monuments, including the famous mosaics of the main temple of the Daphni monastery near Athens (second half of the 11th century), book miniatures and icons, the blessing right hand of the Almighty is depicted, meaning "gesture of speech", a voice from heaven.

The greatest attention in all the images of the Epiphany is attracted by the figures of the Savior and St. John the Baptist, who places his right hand on the head of Christ. In the hymnography of the holiday, as in the icons, the theme of the Lord's acceptance of Baptism from His slave is accentuated: “what the slave will lay his hand on the Lord” is sung in the troparion at the blessing of water. The posture of Christ is different. In early monuments, His figure was often presented strictly frontally; later on, images in a slight turn and movement, as if Christ were making a step, became the most popular. This is directly related to the Gospel text, which says that, having been baptized, Jesus “went up abie (that is, immediately, immediately) from the water” (Matthew 3:16).

Ancient icon-painting originals, compiled in accordance with the Byzantine monuments, give a brief description of the Baptism of the Lord: “Savior naked ... right hand blesses about the thigh, and the Forerunner baptizes Christ. Three angels ... bowed to the Lord, and the Forerunner like on his knees bowed. "

Miniature
Minology of Vasily II.
Constantinople. 985 g

Later texts give a description in more detail: “Our Lord Christ stands in the Jordan River, naked, He bowed His head to the Forerunner, with His hand He blesses the Jordan. On the right side, the mountain is green (i.e. dim green); The Forerunner stands on it near Jordan, bowed to the Lord; and having touched John with his right hand to the most pure top of the Lord, baptize one from the Holy Trinity. On the Forerunner, the riza is from the velbuzhikhs and the belt is worn about his loins, and the robe is shaggy sankiro-wild (brown-olive). On the other side of the river, the mountain is white, like sandy; angels stand, bowing to the Lord; one angel holds a white robe, the robe on it is crimson, underside is azure; the second angel holds a crimson robe, the robe on it is cinnabar, green underside; the third angel holds an azure robe from whitewash, and on it is a green robe, underwear with whitewash ”.

In Russian monuments of the 16th - 17th centuries, despite the prohibition church cathedrals to depict God the Father, in the Epiphany, in the segment of the sky there is often a figure of Hosts. So, on the icon early XVII century master Michael of hosts in white robes is depicted sitting on a throne, on either side of Him are six-winged seraphim. A ray comes out of His mouth, in which the Holy Spirit is depicted in the form of a dove. In late 18th - 19th century icon painting, God the Father was often depicted sitting on a cloud with a scroll in his hands. This scroll with the text: "This is My beloved Son" - performed the same function as in the ancient monuments the symbol of the hand in the sky.

Epiphany. Coptic icon.

Icon of the Epiphany (Baptism of the Lord)
I. Udalov (turn of the XIX-XX centuries)

Following ancient pictorial techniques, in the scenes of the Baptism, artists placed the personification of the Jordan River in the form of a gray-haired old man sitting, as, for example, in the mosaic of the dome of the Arian baptistery, on the bank or located in the river itself along with the personification of the sea, in the form of a floating woman. These images were based on the text of the psalm: Sea view and runaway, Jordan return back ... (Psalm 113: 3). N.V. Pokrovsky explained the reason for the combination of the illustration for this text of the psalm with the image of Baptism by the fact that these words indicate the Old Testament passage of the Jews through the Red Sea, and this event in the New Testament (1 Cor. 10: 1–2) and patristic literature was understood as a prophetic indication of Baptism. According to this interpretation, the named verse of the psalm was transferred to the hymnography of the holiday
from here

Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Fresco

Christ "s Baptism in the Jordan

Arian Baptistery in Ravenna (Italy)
493-526 biennium Dome mosaic

Armenian icon

Icon of the end of the 15th century.
Rublev Museum

Baptism of the Lord (Epiphany) Greece XVII century.
location: England. London. Victoria and Albert Museum
33.6 x 42.2 cm.wood, gold (leaf), natural pigments
technique: gilding, egg tempera

Epiphany
Andrey Rublev (?)
first half of the 15th century
81 x 62 cm linden board, ark, shallow husk.
Pavoloka, gesso, tempera
Blagoveshchensky cathedral Moscow Kremlin

Baptism of the Lord Northern Greece. Late 16th century

Baptism. Icon. Master Michael.
The beginning of the 17th century.
State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg

Miniature from the Gospel
Dionysios Monastery, Athos, XI century

Miniature
Imperial Menology (cod. Walters 521), XI century.

Mystra. Church of Our Lady
Periveptos, XIV century

Mosaic of the Catholicon of the Chora monastery. 1316-1321
Istanbul

Mosaic of the Cathedral of San Marco, XIII century, Venice

Monastery Vysokie Decany, Serbia, Metohija, XIV century

Around 1497
Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve

First half of the 14th century, Gallery of icons in Ohrid

First half of the 16th century, Pskov Museum-Reserve

Pskov, mid-14th century, Hermitage