Altar Cross
ca. 1530 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
This altar cross is of a type that was in common use in England in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Such crosses were made in a way that allowed them to be used on the altar and as well as in processions, carried on a long staff. Another cross of this type is in the Museum collections (museum no. M.39-1920) and shown nearby in gallery 58a.
Materials & Making
The altar cross is made of copper gilt, cast and gilt bronze and a brass alloy.The object comprises separate elements that have come to the Museum from different collections. The cross itself came from the Bernal Collection (named for Ralph Bernal, a celebrated English collector who sold a number of works to the Museum in the 1850s). The figures of the Virgin and St John flanking the cross are from a private collection.
Historical Associations
Comparatively few altar crosses have survived in England. The majority were destroyed or melted down at the Dissolution of the Monasteries, ordered by Henry VIII in the later 1530s, and during the English Civil War (1642-1646).
This altar cross is of a type that was in common use in England in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Such crosses were made in a way that allowed them to be used on the altar and as well as in processions, carried on a long staff. Another cross of this type is in the Museum collections (museum no. M.39-1920) and shown nearby in gallery 58a.
Materials & Making
The altar cross is made of copper gilt, cast and gilt bronze and a brass alloy.The object comprises separate elements that have come to the Museum from different collections. The cross itself came from the Bernal Collection (named for Ralph Bernal, a celebrated English collector who sold a number of works to the Museum in the 1850s). The figures of the Virgin and St John flanking the cross are from a private collection.
Historical Associations
Comparatively few altar crosses have survived in England. The majority were destroyed or melted down at the Dissolution of the Monasteries, ordered by Henry VIII in the later 1530s, and during the English Civil War (1642-1646).
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Copper gilt, cast and gilded bronze, latten (sheet brass) |
| Brief description | Altar cross |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | British Galleries:
Richly decorated crosses were made for altars from the 12th century. Some were also carried in religious processions. The decoration on this one represents the Christian belief that Christ's death redeemed mankind. The roundels show symbols of the four saints (known as the evangelists) whose accounts of Christ's life (the Gospels) were the earliest Christian texts.(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | Made in England; assembled after 1914 |
| Production | The cross was put together with other parts to be displayed together after 1914 |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type This altar cross is of a type that was in common use in England in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Such crosses were made in a way that allowed them to be used on the altar and as well as in processions, carried on a long staff. Another cross of this type is in the Museum collections (museum no. M.39-1920) and shown nearby in gallery 58a. Materials & Making The altar cross is made of copper gilt, cast and gilt bronze and a brass alloy.The object comprises separate elements that have come to the Museum from different collections. The cross itself came from the Bernal Collection (named for Ralph Bernal, a celebrated English collector who sold a number of works to the Museum in the 1850s). The figures of the Virgin and St John flanking the cross are from a private collection. Historical Associations Comparatively few altar crosses have survived in England. The majority were destroyed or melted down at the Dissolution of the Monasteries, ordered by Henry VIII in the later 1530s, and during the English Civil War (1642-1646). |
| Associated objects |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 2093-1855 |
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| Record created | March 27, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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