Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne

Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne (+651) was a monk, missionary, and bishop, who brought Christianity back to the people of Northumbria. He was Irish, and was a monk on Iona who was called by King Oswald to reintroduce Christianity to Northumbria. He founded the monastery at Lindisfarne and travelled ceaselessly to bring the pagan Anglo-Saxons to the True Faith. In this icon, which I recently finished, he is holding the Lindisfarne Gospels, a masterpiece of Hiberno-Saxon art, which was produced in his monastery soon after his repose. The gold background features celtic knotwork.