Browsing away on the internet, I
came across a very rare icon, which I did not know existed. It is entitled Jesus’ First Steps. The most ancient
icon with this depiction, of Mary and Jesus trying to walk is found in Lesvos,
in the Monastery of Leimonos, painted in the 16th century. There are
not many details from Jesus’ childhood[1].
A theory is that this idea derives from an apocryphal source, the Gospel of
James, where we find a description of Mary’s first seven steps.
There we read the following: ‘And
the child grew strong day by day; and when she was six months old, her mother
set her on the ground to try whether she could stand, and she walked seven
steps and came into her bosom; and she snatched her up, saying: As the Lord my
God liveth, thou shall not walk on this earth until I bring thee into the
temple of the Lord.’[2]
(Chapter 6).
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