An icon of Saint Demetrius the Myrrh-gusher, donated by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, and an icon of the Mother of God with the Child, donated by Patriarch Daniil of Bulgaria, were placed on Tuesday in the new laboratory of Bulgaria’s “St. Clement of Ohrid” research base on Livingston Island, in Antarctica.
The icon of Saint Demetrius was offered by the Ecumenical Patriarch during a visit by Bulgarian scientists to Constantinople in October 2025.
On that occasion, the Patriarch blessed Bulgaria’s new Antarctic expedition and personally presented the icon to the research team.
“He donated the icon himself, so that it may protect the Bulgarian base,” said Professor Hristo Pimpirev, head of Bulgaria’s 34th Antarctic expedition.
The icon of the Mother of God with the Child was blessed and donated by the Patriarch of Bulgaria during a special ceremony held early last year at St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia.
“We pray that the Lord will help you and support you. Conditions there are difficult, and it is not easy to work and live,” the Bulgarian Patriarch told the researchers.
The icons arrived in Antarctica at the end of last year aboard the Bulgarian research vessel Sts. Cyril and Methodius, which departed from Varna in November.
About the island and the research base
The new laboratory building at the Bulgarian research base was inaugurated last year and is already operational. It can accommodate 14 people and includes biology and geology laboratories as well as a shared working area.
Founded in 1988, the Bulgarian Antarctic base also includes the chapel of St. John of Rila — the first place of worship built in Antarctica and the southernmost Christian place of worship in the world.
Livingston Island, the second-largest of the South Shetland Islands, is located about 3,000 kilometres from the South Pole.
Photo: Facebook / Christo Pimpirev
