{"id":2677206,"date":"2026-10-06T14:39:47","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T18:39:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/icon-missing-from-florida-church-for-100-years-turns-up-on-a-back-wall-in-another-country\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T14:44:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T18:44:25","slug":"icon-missing-from-florida-church-for-100-years-turns-up-on-a-back-wall-in-another-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/icon-missing-from-florida-church-for-100-years-turns-up-on-a-back-wall-in-another-country\/","title":{"rendered":"Icon Missing from Florida Church for 100 Years Turns Up on a Back Wall in Another Country"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ficon-missing-from-florida-church-for-100-years-turns-up-on-a-back-wall-in-another-country%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2677206&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>An ornate Orthodox icon of St. Nicholas, which had been missing from a Florida church for over 100 years, was unexpectedly rediscovered in Greece. Mayor John Koulianos of Tarpon Springs found the icon during his vacation on the island of Aegina, where it had been sent for restoration after being donated to a local church in 1910. The icon, dating back to the Byzantine empire era, had been lost following a fire in 1923 but was later located on the back wall of Panagitsa Church. Koulianos, working with Greek officials, hopes to facilitate its return to Tarpon Springs and is pursuing a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >sister city relationship<\/a> between the two communities.While Greek Orthodox authorities have yet to approve its repatriation, Koulianos remains optimistic about bringing the icon home and restoring a historic connection.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>An Orthodox icon missing from a Florida church for over a century made an unexpected appearance at a church in Greece.<\/p>\n<p>Mayor John Koulianos of Tarpon Springs, Florida, was on vacation in Greece when he encountered the lost icon of St. Nicholas on the island of Aegina, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox13news.com\/news\/lost-tarpon-springs-religious-painting-discovered-greece-after-103-years\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from WTVT.<\/p>\n<p>Immigrants from the island had given the painting to Florida\u2019s St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral in 1910. After a fire in 1923, the painting was sent back to Aegina for restoration.<\/p>\n<p>But the icon, which was created in the days of the Byzantine Empire, never made it back across the Atlantic.<\/p>\n<p>However, during his vacation, Koulianos met with the mayor of Aegina, and the official called a local priest who remembered where the icon had been left.<\/p>\n<p>The icon was found on the back wall of Panagitsa Church.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Tarpon Springs\u2019 St. Nicholas icon was sent to Greece in 1923. Mayor wants it back <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hHUrsca9xT\">https:\/\/t.co\/hHUrsca9xT<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Tampa Bay Times (@TB_Times) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TB_Times\/status\/2101650149072048183?\">September 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn our vacation to Europe in July, I made a special trip to Aegina to arrange for the completion of the twinning ceremony as well as attempting to locate the icon for its return to Tarpon Springs,\u201d Koulianos wrote on Facebook, per a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianpost.com\/news\/icon-missing-from-florida-church-discovered-after-100-years.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from The Christian Post.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believe I may have been successful in achieving both goals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Koulianos told WTVT that the icon is \u201cabout the size of maybe like a movie poster, it\u2019s about this big, a little bit too big to put in a suitcase.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was thinking about that, and maybe I could just grab it, and that wasn\u2019t going to happen,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>The Christian Post reported that it\u2019s unclear whether Greek Orthodox Church officials will authorize the return of the icon to Tarpon Springs.<\/p>\n<p>But Koulianos certainly wants the St. Nicholas icon back in Florida.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are also working on completing a reunion over 100 years in the making. Bringing a special icon of St. Nicholas back to our St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Tarpon Springs,\u201d Koulianos continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith the blessing of our Metropolitan Sebastian, along with the assistance of our parish priest, Father Aristides, we are hopeful to make this a reality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beyond returning the icon, Koulianos is working with his Greek counterpart to create a sister city relationship between Tarpon Springs and Aegina.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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Mayor Koulianos of Tarpon Springs discovered the St. Nicholas icon on Aegina during vacation, aiming to reunite it with his church<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2677207,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-10-01T021339.093.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[47446,86790,79050],"class_list":["post-2677206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-church-history","tag-icon-discovery","tag-religious-artifacts"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-10-01T021339.093.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2677206"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2677216,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677206\/revisions\/2677216"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2677207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2677206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2677206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2677206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}