A few days before the feast of Saint Catherine, a special batch of bread is prepared, and left to rise for the first time. A priest then blesses the bread, and it is formed into small round loaves. Each of these is stamped with a seal depicting Saint Catherine.
The wooden seal depicting Saint Catherine, carved in reverse. She holds the cross and the palm of victory
The loaves are left to rise for a second time
The oven where the loaves are baked
The oven was fired with wood and brush in earlier times, but now a gas flame supplies the heat
The loaves are inserted into the oven with a long wooden paddle
When they are ready, they are removed and taken to the adjoining room to cool
The loaves with the stamp depicting Saint Catherine
The finished loaves, ready to be taken to the church, where they are distributed to the pilgrims at the end of the service on the feast of Saint Catherine
A lamp is kept lit before an icon of the Virgin Mary of the Burning Bush
The censer used in blessing the bread
Old trays formerly used when the loaves were rising for the second time. These are carved from thick boards of cedar
Such beauty in the process of baking.