These are truly priceless pieces that survived mainly due to the medium that was used to illustrate the religious images. These are encaustic paintings, meaning they were done with a combination of paint and heated wax.

Orthodox Christianity has produced some exquisite expressions of the human spirit, and medieval Byzantium is the one that has made perhaps the biggest contribution to European civilisation. The key thing to remember when viewing an icon is that the artist was charged with making sure the image was seen to the faithful as an object of worship, although some wonderful images created by icon artists had a greater impact on people than those done with less decoration etc.

Today, reproductions of icons can be found hanging in many Kiev hotels and among the decorations in Kiev apartments, but they will be there as primarily decorative images. But for the orthodox believer, an icon has and always will be a vital element in their daily worship, and it’s something they consider worthy of veneration.

These images were historically invested with powerful and miraculous properties, and they were central to the life of the Byzantine Empire. It was during the 17th century that Kiev developed into a major cultural centre, with old churches restored, new ones being built and schools being founded, but this blossoming was curtailed only to a degree when Ukraine then found itself split in two with the west under Polish control and the east under Russian. These divisions didn’t halt the indomitable Ukrainian spirit and the Ukraine remained mentally undivided – and the icons painted by artists of that period bear witness to this spirit.

At the end of the 17th century, icon painters in Kiev developed a unique style called ‘Ukrainian Baroque’. In this style, famous donors, religious leaders, etc were portrayed in icon format, and this began a new movement whereby icons began to acquire properly defined, recognisable features.

Those interested in knowing more about the history of Ukrainian icons can track down a wonderfully illustrated book titled ‘Ukrainian icons of the 11th-18th’ centuries’- compiled by Academician and art historian Lyudmyla Milyayeva.

It’s thanks to her efforts that many icons and church items used in religious services were saved from destruction after the Second World War. She mentions in her book how while walking in the Ukrainian countryside she came across a bas relief with the image of St George lying in a villager’s back yard, which turned out to be 11th century.

You don’t have to wander the countryside in search of icons, though! Just leave your Kiev apartments and make for Desyatynna 12, in the centre of Kiev near St Andrews church. There you will be able to visit the only private museum of Ukrainian Icons. These have been collected by Igor Ponamarchuk, a businessman and patron of the arts. He has had restored many icons that would otherwise have been lost and forgotten. He is also a great fan of the primitive artist Maria Prymachenko, and in his museum you can also view around fifty of her wonderful paintings.

Most of the Crimean Tatars were forcibly moved to Central Asia in 1944 to suppress their nationalist intentions.

The official language of Ukraine is Ukrainian; one of the three East Slavic languages, closely related to Russian and Belorussian.

Tatar Mongols invaded the area in the 13th century but the western Ukrainian principality of Galicia, founded in the 12th century, suffered less from the Mongol invasion.

Annexed by Poland in the 14th century, although the Ukrainian Cossacks allied themselves with Russia.

The partitions of Poland saw much of the land handed over to Russia in 1667, while Galicia became a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1772 to 1919.

The Cave monastery, Perchersky, was founded in the early 11th century and is one of the most sacred buildings of the Russian Orthodox church.

The ruins of the Golden Gate also date from the same period and was once the main entrance to the city.

Kiev was the centre of the Rus principality in the 11th and 12th centuries AD, and it is still known as the Mother of Russian Cities.

From London travel to Ukraine by train…

It’s easy to travel by train from London to Ukraine. It’s also safe, comfortable, affordable and an adventure. Eurostar and German Railways link London with Berlin, then there are daily sleeper trains from Berlin and Warsaw to Kiev. There’s even direct sleeping-cars several times each week from Berlin to Odessa and Simferopol in the Crimea.