A RARE AND IMPORTANT ICON COMMEMORATING THE BORKI TRAIN DISASTER

In October 1888, Emperor Alexander III and his family were aboard the Imperial train en route from Sevastopol to Moscow. The train was travelling too fast and derailed near the town of Borki. None of the Imperial family was hurt, but twenty-two passengers were killed and thirty-five injured. The fact that the Imperial family escaped unscathed was attributed to the Emperor's quick actions and God’s divine intervention. Numerous icons were presented to the emperor and other members of the family to commemorate their miraculous escape.

The present icon depicts the namesake saints of the Emperor Alexander III, his wife Maria Feodorovna and their children. It also depicts St Hosea and St Andrew of Crete, whose Feast days were jointly celebrated on 17 October, the date of the train crash.