Icons, Crosses and Cyrillic: The Batushka Designs Explained

Almost every Batushka design is lettered in Cyrillic, which makes it striking and a little hard to read. Here is what each one shows.

Which designs come from the releases?

Hospodi: a veiled figure in a mitre with a staff and a skull, on a red triangle of Church Slavonic lettering. Hospodi means "Lord", and it is the 2019 album from the line-up fronted by Bartłomiej Krysiuk. Raskol: a robed figure pierced by swords, with РАСКОЛ down both sides and a tall cross on the back. Raskol means "schism", the name of the 2020 EP. Black Rituals: a wooden Orthodox church glowing blue at night, over ЧЁРНЫЕ РИТУАЛЫ, named for the 2024 live album.

What are the Patriarkh designs?

Patriarkh is the name Krysiuk's line-up has used since December 2024. Black Pascha prints ЧЕРНАЯ ПАСХА under an angel by an empty tomb, with ПАСХА В КРАКОВЕ 2024 on the back, after the live album recorded in Krakow in 2024. Matushka prints МАТУШКА, Russian for "mother", just as Batushka means "father".

And the icon designs?

Mary Dagger and Maria II show the Mother of God with blades across her chest, marked МР ѲУ, the icon letters for "Mother of God". Head Art puts a head on a dish under a red onion-dome arch. Double Eagle Coin is a back print: a crowned double-headed eagle, the old Russian imperial emblem, under the gold БАТЮШКА lettering.

Which one is for me?

If you love the records, start with Hospodi or Raskol. If it's the icons that drew you in, pick one of the two Marys. See them all in the Batushka shop.