Introduction
The ‘Virgin of the Sign’ is a twelfth-century icon of the Virgin Mary kept to this day in Great Novgorod, Russia — the ‘sign’ refers to the promise made by the prophet Isaiah to King Ahaz, that one day a virgin would conceive and bear a son. In 1170 the icon saved the city from a siege, and a special church was built for it, but it would seem that by the seventeenth century the mystique was beginning to wear off.
ONE day Luka Plavilshchikov took it into his head to rob the little stone Church of the Sign in Novgorod, built in honour of a historic icon that had once saved the city from disaster.* After Evensong on November 27th, 1636,* he remained behind in the church, and waited for night.
When all seemed quiet, Luka crept out and got to work. He rifled money boxes and swept chalice and paten into his bag. Then his eye fell on the famous Icon of the Sign, and he snapped out a knife ready to prise off the precious gems.* But in the instant Luka laid his hand upon the picture, he was thrown backwards and fell to the floor stunned,* with his bag beneath him.
When the sexton came in next morning to set the church up for matins, he found Luka still lying there. Making a pardonable diagnosis, he told Luka to sober up and shooed him out of the church; but he failed to notice Luka’s bag, so it was some time before the theft was detected. A search of Luka’s house revealed the stolen goods, by which time he was ready to confess the whole tale.
* See Sign of Deliverance. The icon shows the Virgin Mary at prayer with Christ as if in her womb, understood as the fulfilment of the sign of Emmanuel prophesied in Isaiah 7:14. It was kept in the then-wooden Church of the Transfiguration of the Saviour on Ilyina Street for nearly two centuries, then in 1357 it was moved to its own dedicated stone church — the one mentioned in this story — just a few yards away. That was rebuilt as the Cathedral of The Virgin of the Sign (the Znamensky Cathedral) in 1682-88. The Icon of the Sign survived both Communist ideology and Nazi occupation, and since 1992 it has been displayed in the eleventh-century St Sophia Cathedral.
* November 27th (December 10th on the civil calendar) is the official feast commemorating the lifting of the siege of Novgorod in 1170. The events themselves took place in late February, but as that almost always falls within Great Lent, the celebrations were moved to the much less sober Nativity Fast that runs from November 15th to December 24th. Advent makes a particularly appropriate season to celebrate the Sign of Emmanuel, which is a prophecy of Christ’s birth.
* Many icons are encased in a moulded cover in silver or gold, often studded with precious gems, in order to save the painting within from the wear and tear of veneration by the faithful. The Novgorod icon as it is displayed today has no cover, being safely behind glass.
* Novgorod tradition records that a few years before this, in 1611, the Swedes had captured the city and systematically robbed its churches. A party of looters came to the Church of the Sign, where there was a service in progress and the doors were wide open, but to their utter bewilderment they found themselves quite unable to cross the threshold. They gave up and told their fellows, who did not trouble the little church again.
Précis
In 1636, a Russian thief who was robbing a church in Novgorod reached out for its most precious relic, the Icon of the Sign (on its feast day too), and was instantly knocked unconscious by an invisible Hand. He got away next morning after been mistaken for a drunk, but it was not long before the amazing tale came out. (60 / 60 words)
In 1636, a Russian thief who was robbing a church in Novgorod reached out for its most precious relic, the Icon of the Sign (on its feast day too), and was instantly knocked unconscious by an invisible Hand. He got away next morning after been mistaken for a drunk, but it was not long before the amazing tale came out.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 65 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 55 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, because, just, may, since, unless, until, whether.
Archive
Word Games
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Notice. Remain. There.
2 Day. Sober. Stone.
3 But. Little. Pardonable.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
Homonyms Find in Think and Speak
Each of the words below has more than one possible meaning. Compose your own sentences to show what those different meanings are.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1. Set. 2. Lie. 3. Found. 4. Still. 5. Box. 6. Sign. 7. Notice.
Adjectives Find in Think and Speak
For each word below, compose sentences to show that it may be used as an adjective. Adjectives provide extra information about a noun, e.g. a black cat, a round table, the early bird etc..
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Good. 2 Instant. 3 Revealing. 4 Searching. 5 Still. 6 Famous. 7 Whole. 8 Lesser. 9 Precious.
Variations: 1.show whether your adjective can also be used as e.g. a noun, verb or adverb. 2.show whether your adjective can be used in comparisons (e.g. good/better/best). 3.show whether your adjective can be used in attributive position (e.g. a dangerous corner) and also in predicate position (this corner is dangerous).
Add Vowels Find in Think and Speak
Make words by adding vowels to each group of consonants below. You may add as many vowels as you like before, between or after the consonants, but you may not add any consonants or change the order of those you have been given. See if you can beat our target of common words.
sg (5+2)
sag. saga. sage. siege. usage.
sago. segue.
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