English: Painted on a single strip of parchment, this small folding book, sometimes described as a sensul, assumes a form that first appeared in the 16th century. These strips, which are typically folded into multiple compartments, feature painted decoration and accompanying inscriptions that identify the picture and include short hymns or prayers. Two hide covers, which might not be original, have been stitched onto either end of the strip to create a protective cover. The small scale of the object, which fits comfortably into a pocket, indicates that it was designed for private devotion. The book, which unfolds to present a miniature picture cycle, was perfectly suited to its function. The ten panels that make up the object create a pictorial synopsis of the life of Mary, beginning with her birth and ending in her assumption into Heaven. The fact that each end of the parchment strip incorporates an unpainted margin, which in the first panel features an inscription, indicates that the cycle is complete. In addition to the life of Mary, the strip also incorporates some of the features of the painted icon. The figure of Saint George, who often acted as Mary's messenger, appears next to the Virgin and Child, adopting a format also common among pendant icons. Their placement within the strip allowed the owner to open the parchment to these two scenes, thereby creating a diptych icon in miniature. The style of the painting, which has connections to both panel painting and manuscript illumination, suggests that the object was produced during the first Gondarine period, perhaps at the end of the 17th century.