St. Nicholas the Wonderworker is one of the most beloved saints in Russia. The most famous legend connected with him is about the way the saint rescued the city of Mozhaisk from the Tatar-Mongol invasion. In honor of the miraculous appearance of Nicholas over the city, after which the enemies lifted the siege of the kremlin, the residents of Mozhaisk cut out the image of their protector on the city gates. From that day on, the icons of St. Nicholas began gaining popularity with Russians. People believed that his image protects from adversities, enemies, and accidental and vain death. St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was also considered to be the patron saint of travelers, especially sailors, a protector of children and unjustly convicted.

‘St. Nicholas the Wonderworker with selected feasts’ is the traveling icon triptych. Such folding icons generally showed the main scenes from the Bible. Oftentimes, people in Russia had to move from place to place, sometimes their journey lasted for several months with no opportunity to pray in church. Folding icons let travelers, warriors and devotees have their favorite icons at hand, when the panels were folded shut, the size of the whole triptych did not exceed the size of a pocket icon.