Akathist. St. Great Martyr Barbara

Printed at the printing house of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra on January 13, 1840. Printed in two colors (black and red), the text in Church Slavonic, set within a frame decorated with a lavish floral ornament of flowers, fruit, leaves, ribbons, and cherubim. Catchwords appear at the foot of the pages, with letter foliation in the upper right corner of the frame. The akathist is decorated with running heads, in-text illustrations, headpieces, initials, and tailpieces. The edition contains an engraving depicting Saint Barbara. The cover is of striped cardboard, in gray-black tones. On the flyleaf is the inscription (in Russian): "Property of Archpriest Viktor Yavorsky — 1926."

The book was transferred to the museum by ZhEK-3 (Housing Maintenance Office No. 3) of the Malyshev Plant in 1983, following the death of Olha Vsevolodivna Kakhovska of Kharkiv.

Note: the Akathist to the Holy Great Martyr Barbara is a solemn church hymn of praise dedicated to the early Christian great martyr Barbara, who lived in the late 3rd to early 4th century and accepted a martyr's death for her faith at the hands of her pagan father, Dioscorus. It consists of 25 hymns (kontakia and ikoi) glorifying the saint's deeds, her unwavering faith, and her purity. Most of the ikoi end with the joyful refrain: "Rejoice, Barbara, fair bride of Christ."