Anthony the Stylite of Georgia

Venerable Anthony the Stylite of Georgia, also called Anthony of Martkopi, was a pillar-⁠dwelling ascetic of the sixth century, one of the thirteen Assyrian Fathers who came to Georgia.

He arrived in Georgia in the sixth century with the other Assyrian Fathers and settled in Kakheti to preach the Gospel of Christ. He always carried with him an icon of the Saviour "not made by human hands". He withdrew into the wilderness, where deer visited him each evening and fed him with their milk. One day the deer came earlier than usual, frightened. Following their tracks, Anthony came upon a pagan nobleman hunting nearby. Seeing him with the icon among the deer and thinking him a threat, the nobleman ordered his servants to take him to a blacksmith and have his hands cut off. As the smith prepared, he suddenly fell and his arms became like wood. Anthony made the sign of the Cross over him and the smith was healed.

Hearing of the miracle, the nobleman realized that Anthony was truly a holy man and told him to ask for whatever he needed. The monk asked only for a piece of salt, and they brought him two large blocks. He broke off a small piece and set it by his cell for the deer. After the incident with the smith, many people began to visit him, and Anthony built a monastery for the faithful. Because too many people came, he withdrew to the top of a mountain and began to preach from the top of a pillar, where he remained for fifteen years.

God revealed to him the day of his departure from this world. He gathered his disciples, gave them his last words of wisdom, blessed them and died on his knees before his beloved icon. His body was taken down from the pillar and buried in the monastery he had founded, before the icon of the Mother of God. He is commemorated on 19 January, according to the new calendar.