Omophorions

The omophorion is one of the specific components of the sacerdotal attire of the bishops, denoting the distinctive sign of the bishop. Its name is of Greek origin and it symbolizes the function of this garment of being worn on the shoulders, but the piece itself, as a liturgical decoration, has its origin not in a Greek garment, but in the old Roman pallium, that is, in that scarf which the nobles of the Eternal Citadel were wearing on different festive occasions, over their shoulders and over the toga or the paenula.

As a sacerdotal garment specific to the Christian Orthodox religion, the omophorion is made of a stripe of expensive fabric, silk, velvet or wool linen, about 3.50 to 4 metres long and twenty to thirty cm wide, on which the sign of the cross, the image of the mystic lamb, as well as other biblical scenes - especially from the life of Jesus Christ, are embroidered with gold, silver and coloured silk threads.

The colours and the iconographic scenes of the omophorions vary depending on the type of religious services that the bishops are to officiate: birth, baptism, marriage, funeral, the Resurrection, etc. Usually, though, when the mystic lamb is present, it is always on the upper side of the garment which is placed around the back, thus reminding the faithful of the well-known parable of the stray sheep that Our Saviour carried on His shoulders in order to bring it on the right path.


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