The original Iveron icon of the Mother of God is preserved on Mt. Athos. It is traditionally called the Panagia Portaitissa ("She who resides by the door" or "Keeper of the gate"), and was, according ...

Georgian monks began to settle on Mt. Athos in the middle of the 10th century, and a Georgian monastery, Iveron, was founded there not long after. At that time foreign armies were constantly invading ...