The Virgin is depicted half-way, praying with her left hand on the chest, holding young Christ with her right; Christ is blessing with his right hand while having a wrapped scroll in his left. The iconographic model of the icon is traced in a 6th century work in Rome and it is also known thanks to the icon of the Virgin that is made without human hands (acheiropoietos ), an icon that is found on a wall or a church pillar in the city Lydda-Diospoli and was disseminated by the introduction of the honor of Virgin Mary in the 12th century. The icon was transferred to Thessaloniki from a place in the eastern Mediterranean, possibly from Cyprus. This viewpoint is suggested by the style of the figures that combine elements of the Oriental Orthodox tradition in painting with the art of the West. The dual artistic style of the icon recalls the Lusignan period in Cyprus (1191-1478), placing the dating of the icon around 1200.