Processional cross
1330–1350, Spain
© The Trustees of the British Museum. All rights reserved.

This cross would have been mounted on a staff, so that it could be carried in church ceremonies before the clergy. It depicts the Crucifixion, flanked by the Virgin Mary. At the base, Adam rises from his tomb and, at the top, an angel swings a censer. On the back, elaborate engravings depict Christ seated in majesty with symbols of the four evangelists: Matthew (man), Mark (lion), Luke (ox) and John (eagle). Such embellishment ensured that the cross would be the focal point of worship.

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