In late 2017 our Parish Council resolved to undertake two major improvements to our parish centre in West Gosford: the construction of a mezzanine floor and choir loft, and the design and installation of a new iconostasis.  Work on the mezzanine floor was commenced in mid-2018 and completed in mid-2019.  On the recomendation of the parish rector, Moscow-based iconographer Maria Burganova-Yaltanskaya was then commissioned to design a new iconostasis.  Information about Maria and examples of her work can be viewed here and here.

A typical iconostasis has certain fixed elements:

• The lower row has the Holy Doors, icons of Christ and the Mother of God, and the “local icons”.  The local icons are those of the patron saint of the church or chapel and of others important to the parish or community;
• The deacon’s doors usually have icons of angels or of deacon-saints;
• The second row has icons of the twelve Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church, the main events in the life of Christ and of the Mother of God, and an icon of the Last Supper above the Holy Doors;
• Further rows generally have icons of apostles, prophets, bishop-saints and martyrs;
• Above the icon of the Last Supper is an icon of Christ on His throne, with the Mother of God and John the Baptist on either side;
• At the top is a cross.

The final design, accepted by the Parish Council in August 2020, can be viewed here.  It follows the basic principles set out above.  The main variations are:

• One of the deacon’s doors has an image of Righteous Melchizedek of Salem, an Old Testament priest-king who is seen as a foreshadowing of Christ.  His depiction on one of the doors is quite common within the Russian tradition;
• Our third and final row has a combination of bishop-saints, royal saints and martyrs as we do not have room for different rows for each kind of saint.

The "local icons" in the design are of Saint Panteleimon, the patron saint of our parish, and of Saint Ksenia of Saint Petersburg, the patron saint of our parish Ladies' Auxiliary.  Seven of the saints in the top row are well-known and widely venerated: Saints Tatiana, Sophia, Helen, Olga, Vladimir, Sergius and Alexander Nevsky.  The three lesser-known saints are Saint Gennady of Novgorod and the Martyrs Leonid and Raisa.  Each of them is linked in a number of ways to important people in the life and history of our parish, and to the family of a major benefactor.

In January 2021 we signed an agreement concerning the manufacture of the iconostasis in Moscow.  The work was to be undertaken in four stages:

• Stage 1: Preparation of the icon boards and purchase of the timber and other materials – by the end of May 2021;
• Stage 2: Completion of the interior supporting structure, partial completion of the icons, and preparation of a detailed plan for the woodcarvers – by the end of August 2021;
• Stage 3: Substantial completion of the icons and the wooden elements; project review to ensure compliance prior to the final stage – by the end of January 2022;
• Stage 4: Completion of the icons and the wood carving; varnishing of the icons and wooden elements; trial assembly completed; packing for transportation completed – by the end of March 2022.

Our hope was that the iconostasis would be completed and packed for shipping by the end of March 2022, arriving in Australia for assembly and installation and be ready for blessing by the feast-day of Saint Panteleimon, 9 August 2022.  The February 2022 escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War and its effects had a significant adverse effect on the completion of this project.

Stage One of the manufacture of the iconostasis was completed on time by 12 May 2021.  As the photographs below show, work had progressed beyond what was expected, with significant work on the interior supporting structure having also been done.

Stage Two of the manufacture of the iconostasis was completed by 30 September 2021.  As the photographs below show, work had again progressed beyond what was expected, with significant work on the wood carving having been finished.

Stage Three of the manufacture of the iconostasis was completed by 10 December 2021.  As the photographs below show, the icons and the wooden elements were by then almost all finished, with some minor changes having been made to the design.

Stage Four of the manufacture of the iconostasis was substantially completed by 21 August 2022.  As the photographs below show, the icons and wooden elements had all been finished.

This stage was complicated by the reluctance of shipping companies to deal with projects involving Russia.  Thankfully, we were introduced by members of our parish to the amazingly energetic and optimistic Irina Eddaira (Irina and her husband Frank own and operate Hidden Valley Farms in Carrick, NSW) who in turn introduced us to Alexandra Detkova and her team at Crown Relocations in Moscow, Russia.  Crown Relocations were not only willing to work with us - they made the process of getting the iconostasis from Russia to Australia much easier than it would otherwise have been.  A shipping container holding the elements of our iconostasis left Klaipeda, Lithuania, on 27 May 2023 and arrived in Australia on 22 July 2023.  It cleared quarantine on 16 August 2023 and was delivered to our church on 25 August 2023.  The images below include photographs of the packing of the iconostasis in Moscow, some of the shipping movements from the tracking system we used to follow progress of the container from Europe to Australia, and delivery of the iconostasis here in West Gosford.

Prior to the installation of the iconostasis, work was undertaken to strengthen the sanctuary platform and extend the soleas (the part of the sanctuary platform in front of the iconostasis) and the amvon (the extended area in front of the Royal Doors). This work was undertaken in July 2023.  Beginning in late August 2023, the old iconostasis and flooring were removed.  The new iconostasis was installed and new flooring was laid during September and October 2023.  The images below show this work at various stages.

On Sunday 3 December 2023 we welcomed His Grace, Bishop George of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand,  on his first visit to our parish since 2019.  After the reading of the entry prayers and the vesting of the bishop, the Hours were read and the rite of blessing and consecration of the new iconostasis was served.  Bishop George then presided at Divine Liturgy, assisted by the parish rector and by Protodeacon Martin Naef and Deacon Michal Matys.  Our parishioners were joined in church by friends from Sydney, Newcastle, and the Mid North Coast, and the clergy were helped by subdeacons and experienced altar-servers from the Fairfield, Wallsend, and Strathfield parishes.  The choir, augmented by singers from Strathfield, Croydon, Cabramatta, and Centennial Park, sang beautifully under the direction of Kolya Morozoff.  A festive lunch was then held at our parish centre.