The most literal translation of the word εικονογραφία (eikonographia) is "image writing," leading many English-speaking Orthodox Christians to insist that icons are not "painted" but rather "written." From there, further explanations are given that icons are to be understood in a manner similar to Holy Scripture—that is, they are not simply artistic compositions but rather are witnesses to the truth the way Scripture is. Far from being imaginative creations of the iconographer, they are more like scribal copies of the Bible.

Since the Byzantine Empire, Orthodox Slavs, in addition to the cross, also worn wore on chest miniature icons. Pectoral icons were made from various types of metals: copper, bronze, silver. Common people wore under clothing icons made from wood, bone, copper, iron. The rich courtiers and nobles commissioned the silver and gold icons and richly decorated them with jewels and pearls. Widely used was hot enamel.