ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the iconic imagery of St Anna and Joachim. It argues that Anna and Joachim are included in the iconography of Mary's early life because of their parental relationship with their daughter, but the exalted figure is always Mary. It describes that the Mariological cycle would not be discussed, as it demonstrates veneration for Mary rather than Anna. In a niche in the eastern wall, St Anna is standing to the right of the Virgin of the Annunciation and is holding the baby Mary in front of her. Visual evidence from the twelfth century onwards shows that in several regions of the Byzantine Empire the Mandylion was placed in the sanctuary together with the Annunciation, because it was this event that declared the Incarnation of the Logos. The contribution of Crete to the scene was the introduction of Joachim and Anna.
