Featured tiny sterling easel-back icon(?)

First and foremost, I will claim utter ignorance when it comes to religious items like this one. They're just not something I've ever learned about...

That said, I must ask for assistance, please. ANYTHING you might be able to tell me about this piece would be greatly appreciated.

What I know:
1) it's about 1 3/4" x 2";
2) it's marked 925 1000 on the back;
3) it has a charming little easel-back.

(Told you I didn't know about this stuff!)

Anyway, here are some photos:



Thanks for any input!

 

Any chance you can get closeup pictures of the lower part of the back of the frame? All the way across?

 

Bakers, I just plugged my camera battery in to recharge...

For now, I'm showing one of my earlier photos, with the marks circled (I know you
can't read them!) There's a 925 in lower left, 1000 in lower right. In between them (and all the way across the bottom) there are no other words/letters/numbers/ symbols or marks - just a tiny scrape where the easel part closes against the back.

 

The icon is Jesus as Salvator Mundi, and the inscription is among the most common of Greek Christograms - IC XC - i.e. the first and final letters of each of the words Ιησούς Χριστός - "Jesus Christ" - here with the final Sigma in the lunate form, appearing as "C" rather than as "Σ." The icon's background is intended to recall papyrus (more properly, "rush" - גמא), generally intended to recall the passage in verse eleven, in the eighth chapter of the Book of Job, regarding Faith flourishing [like rushes in the marsh] in Humankind.

It's a very pretty [Champlevé?] icon.
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Thank you very much, Shallow!

 

@SBSVC - You're entirely welcome, of course. Not much help, I'm afraid.
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Ah, but Shallow, you MUST have seen my initial plea!

Your input was NOT "NOTHING"! I know way more about this piece now than I did this morning!

Thank you again!

 

@Bakersgma
Bakers, I have tried about 200 times to get a decent photo! (This thing is SMALL, and the marks are even SMALLER!)

Anyway, this is the best I came up with, and it's not great...

I'm just wondering if the mark on the right, which I've been seeing as 1000, is really that? (see 2nd photo)

Any thoughts about where this might have been made?

 

It does look sort of like 1000, but I cannot think why the 1000 should be so far away from the 925. When I first asked for a close up I was thinking that the shape was that of an Italian marks lozenge. And now we know it's not.

 

Thanks, Bakers. I'm stymied...

 

@SBSVC - Crete has been - and continues today to be - an important producer of Greek Icons in many styles. A close inspection (a 30x loupe and good lighting) of the enamelwork might give you a clue. With absolutely no intent to diminish this lovely piece in any fashion, if, indeed, this is raised-field champlevé, it seems not to have been carefully stoned before its final firing, nor do the cells appear to have been brought above level before stoning, which suggests factory work, rather than jeweler's quality handwork.

I'd probably suggest that it's not of Italian manufacture, since most of the modern Italian-made champlevé-on-silver pieces are a little more delicate and elaborate, vide:



Caveat: this reply falls into the category of pure speculation, based upon a fragile and tenuous grasp of religious iconography.
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I think the mark is from southeastern Europe, Bulgarian or Greek would be my first options. Both countries now use mostly .925 silver fineness.

 

The icon part appears to be die stamped and framed with rivets.The main looks like it was cast.

 

Thank you so very much, Shallow, AJ & Hollyblue! I truly appreciate your input - and your taking the time to reply to my plea for help.

I've been racking my brain, trying to figure out how I came to have this little piece in the first place. It's been in one of my older jewelry boxes for ages, and I can only assume that someone must have brought it back for me from Greece or somewhere. I'm usually MUCH better at remembering who gave me things!

It's been a curiosity for me, and now I feel that I know a lot more about it!

Thanks again!
-C-