The symbol of the cross in Christianity. Old Russian pectoral crosses

02.06.2019

Read also

The art of ancient greece

Legendary Greek statues

The Ugliest Man in the World

The Tale of the Priest and His Worker

The latest technology for kids

Old Russian pectoral crosses XI-XIII centuries

Despite the abundance of ancient crosses held both in the hands of archaeologists and in various collections, the associated layer historical science practically not studied.

Cross-korsuchik; XIII century Material: metal silver, serpentine; technique: granulating, stone carving, filigree, embossing (basma)

In the overview, we will briefly talk about the types and types of Old Russian body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries. There is no complete set of types of pre-Mongol body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries. Moreover, even clear principles of material classification have not been developed. Meanwhile, there are many publications devoted to this topic.

They can be conditionally divided into two groups: publications of collections and articles devoted to archaeological finds. The famous two-volume edition of the collection of B.I. and V.N. Khanenko, which was published in Kiev. Now, after almost a century break, a number of catalogs of private collections with sections dedicated to the XI-XIII century crosses have been published: one can mention the Millennium of the Cross by A.K. Stanyukovich, “Catalog of Medieval Small Sculptures” by A.A. Chudnovets, the publication of the collection of the Vologda collector Surov, a description of the samples of pre-Mongol metal-plastic materials of the Odessa Museum of Numismatics. With all the difference in the scientific quality of the description, these publications are united by one thing - the randomness of the selection of the described material and the absence of a classification principle. If the second is associated with the undeveloped scientific topic, then the first only testifies to the absence of serious, representative collections that can be provided by their owner for publication. It is also worth mentioning the work of Nechitailo “Catalog of Old Russian pectoral crosses X-XIII centuries ", in which the author tries, although not quite successfully, to systematize all the types of pre-Mongol pectoral crosses and cruciform appendages known to him. This work suffers from the obvious incompleteness and extreme subjectivity of the author, who for some reason classifies cruciform overlays and even buttons as body crosses, and who has included a number of fakes in his catalog. It is hoped that the catalog of the collection of solid crosses of the 11th-13th centuries, which is now being prepared for publication, will become a pleasant exception. S.N. Kutasova - the vastness of the collection provides the authors with ample opportunities to build a typology of pre-Mongol pectoral crosses.

Articles devoted to archaeological finds, and at the same time not being a collection of such finds, by their nature cannot have any complete idea of the types of crosses. At the same time, it is they who create the basis for the correct dating of objects and help to avoid curious situations when objects of the 15th century, and sometimes of the 17th-18th centuries, which are not always even solid crosses, are described in catalogs of private collections as pre-Mongol crosses (for example - famous Vologda edition).

And, nevertheless, despite the existing problems, we can at least in general outline describe all the abundance of known this moment pre-Mongol crosses, highlighting several large groups of objects.

Fig. 2 Old Russian pectoral crosses with the image of the Crucifixion, XI-XIII centuries

The smallest group includes solid crosses with images. If on encolpions and solid icons of the 11th-13th centuries the range of images is quite extensive - we find images of Jesus, the Mother of God, archangels, saints, sometimes there are multi-figured scenes - then on vests we see only the image of the Crucifixion, sometimes with the forthcoming ones. Perhaps the only exception is a group of double-sided crosses depicting saints in medallions. There is also a small group of crosses - overflow from encolpions. At the moment, several dozen different types of pre-Mongol crosses with a crucifixion have been published. (Fig. 2) With the exception of a few basic ones, these types are represented by a fairly small number of known specimens.

Fig. 3 Pre-Mongol pectoral crosses with the image of the Crucifixion and the Mother of God, XI-XIII centuries

The rarity of "subject" body crosses in Russia in pre-Mongol times is a question requiring clarification. On the territory of Byzantium, from the Black Sea region to the Middle East, crosses with images - most often the Crucifixion or the Mother of God of Oranta - are found no less often than ornamental crosses, in Russia during this period we see a completely different ratio of occurrence. Body crosses with the image of the Mother of God, as far as we know, are quite rare in Russia. (Fig. 3) At the same time, one should take into account the popularity of solid icons and encolpions with the image of the Mother of God and the saints, as well as the fact that among the types of crosses of the late 14th century. - the beginning of the 17th century. crosses with figured images predominate.

Fig. 4 Old Russian pectoral crosses of the Scandinavian types, XI-XIII centuries

Most of the pre-Mongol body crosses are decorated with ornaments. Among the non-ornamental, the simplest from the technical and artistic point view can only be attributed to small leaden crosses dating from the beginning of the XI century. Classifying ornamental crosses is not an easy task. The types with "Scandinavian" and "Byzantine" ornaments stand out most naturally from the bulk. On the basis of comparison with northern material, no more than a few dozen "Scandinavian types" can be distinguished, which, however, were quite widespread. (Fig.4) The situation with the "Byzantine" ornament is more complicated. On many crosses, originating from Byzantine territory, one can see an ornament consisting of circles pressed into the surface. (Fig. 5)

Fig. 5 Byzantine pectoral crosses found in the area Ancient Rus, XI-XIII centuries

There are various explanations for this pattern, the most famous of which boil down to the fact that we have either schematic representation five wounds of Christ, which then turned into an element of decor, or it is a protective symbolism that protects its wearer from the "evil eye". On Russian crosses, with the exception of one, but rather numerous group, such an ornament is rare, but at the same time, it almost always adorns the surface of very popular Slavic amulets depicting a "lynx", as well as amulets-hatchets, and is found on shields of a large group of rings, the influence on the type of which on the part of Byzantine objects of personal piety seems very doubtful. So this ornament can be called "Byzantine" rather conditionally, although from the formal point of view the parallels between the group of Old Russian and Byzantine crosses seem obvious.

Fig. 6 Old Russian pectoral crosses with a curved end of the blades, XI-XIII centuries.

The bulk of ornamental decorations, almost 90 percent, have primordially Russian origin... But before characterizing them, you need to turn your gaze to the very shape of the crosses. The morphology of Old Russian body crosses is striking in its diversity. Byzantium did not know such a diversity of forms, did not know it, as far as we can judge, and medieval Europe... The phenomenon of this diversity requires a historical explanation. But before talking about this, it is necessary to at least briefly describe the most characteristic forms"Branches" of pre-Mongol body crosses. The most natural thing would be to expect the dominance of the straight-ended form of "branches", as we find in Byzantium. However, this is not the case - the straight-pointed form is relatively rare compared to other forms of branches. Crosses of the "Maltese type", with "branches" expanding to the tip, which were quite popular in Byzantium, in Russia only a few types are known, and even then they are quite rare. The main mass is made up of crosses, the branches of which end with a "criniform", that is, a lily-like ending. It would be wrong to assert that this form of the "branch" of the cross is a purely Russian specificity. This form is also found in Byzantium, but in a very small proportional relation to equal-pointed crosses, and mainly in the Balkans. (Fig. 6)

Strictly speaking, it cannot be argued that the "crinkled" type of "branches" dominates the solid crosses of the 11th-13th centuries in their pure form. The "ideal" crinkled type covers, perhaps, no more than a quarter of all types of vests of this era. However, the fundamental influence of the "crinkled" shape on the morphology of the pre-Mongolian vest cross seems obvious to me. In addition to the "ideal" crinovype, we find the following forms of completion of the "branches": three points located in a triangle, a triangle, a circle with three points on the outside, a bead with three points or one, finally, just a bead or a circle. At first glance, the rounded end of the "branch" of the cross can hardly be reduced to a criniform, however, if you build a typological series, you can easily see the morphological transformation that turns the crinovid into an environment or a bead.

Thus, revealing the dominance of the curved type of "branches" of the cross, we can assume that the character of the decor of the cross, which is inseparable from its shape, will be determined by this very shape. This, apparently, explains the originality of the decor of the Old Russian body crosses.

Fig. 7 Old Russian cross-cut pendants of the 11-13th centuries.

A special and very numerous group is made up of the so-called cross-shaped pendants. Their semantics are not completely clear - they equally contain elements in their form, such as christian cross and a pagan amulet. The difficulty in attributing them to Christian subjects also lies in the fact that the motif of the cross is not alien to paganism. When we see ovals intertwined in a cruciform manner, four circles connected in a cruciform manner, a rhombus with balls at the end, or a curved pendant resembling a cross in shape, we cannot say with certainty whether Christian influence was reflected in such a composition, or whether it is purely pagan symbolism. Based archaeological finds it can only be argued that these objects existed in the same environment as the cross-vests, which gives some grounds for considering them in the context of objects of personal piety, albeit with some reservations. (Fig. 7)

The main argument for dividing the cruciform appendages into "Christian" and "pagan" groups (both designations are conditional) can be the presence or absence of numerous similar items originating from Byzantine territory. In the case of "cross-linked" pendants, we must recognize them to a greater extent as objects Christian culture than pagan, since there are numerous analogues originating from the entire Byzantine territory, and in Kherson this type, as far as can be judged, was one of the most common types of vest crosses. At the same time, one cannot fail to notice that on pendants of this type, almost all crosses included in the circle have curved, or close to curved ends. Thus, even in relation to this type, which has many analogies among the Byzantine material, we cannot speak of a complete borrowing of the form from Byzantium.

Fig. 8 Old Russian cross-included lunars of the 7th-13th centuries

An interesting example of a pagan-Christian synthesis is the moon, which includes a cross. Knowing the many pre-Christian types of lunnits, it can be argued without doubt that the cross that arose on some types of linnits (however, quite rare) is a purely Christian element, and is a consequence of the emerging "dual faith" - that is organic compound pagan and Christian views within a single model of the world. It is well known that the "dual faith" in Russia within folk culture lasted until the very late time, and the existence of lunettes with a cross, which should be included both in the vaults of pre-Mongol body crosses, and pagan amulets is its brightest manifestation. (Fig. 8)

More about moonworms and others Slavic amulets can be found in the article "Old Russian pendants and amulets of the XI-XIII centuries".

In parallel with the semantic typology of the cross-vest I outlined, several typological groups can be distinguished, based on the material and technique of making the crosses. A serious historian striving for subjects of the "first level" cannot but ask the question - are there golden vest crosses? Such items, of course, existed, but, apparently, only in princely use. There are only a few known gold crosses originating from the territory of Russia. At the same time, on the territory of Byzantium, such items are not an absolute rarity. Body crosses made of gold leaf with semiprecious stones are found as in the western antique market, and in archaeological reports, however, full-weight golden crosses are quite rare, and in the West, as well as in Russia, it is almost impossible to find them on the antique market.

Silver body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries represent a fairly small group of objects. Most of them are small crosses simple forms, with "branches" ending in beads, and rather large crosses with "Scandinavian" ornament. Silver crosses unusual forms are rare. Burial crosses made of sheet silver appear in archaeological publications, but in practice they are extremely rare.

Fig. 9 Old Russian stone body crosses, XI - XIII centuries.

A separate group is made up of stone body crosses. They are distinguished by simplicity of form, absence of thread. Only in some cases are they framed in silver. They are mainly made of slate, less often of marble. The marble crosses are of Byzantine origin. Despite the fact that they are not objectively rare - they are often found during excavations in Byzantine territory - in reality there are not so many of them, which is simply explained: they cannot be found by a metal detector, and are only an accidental find.

The group of enamel crosses is very numerous. The standard "Kiev" type of enamel cross is one of the most common types of pre-Mongol crosses. Variety of subtypes inside general type the simplest enamel cross is large enough. In addition to the very basic division into two subtypes according to the number of balls with which the "branch" ends, they differ in the colors of the enamel, as well as in the decor of the reverse side: if most of these crosses are double-sided, then one-sided crosses with a smooth flip side, with an engraved cross on the reverse side or with an inscription, most often unreadable due to the quality of the casting.

Fig. 10 Pre-Mongol pectoral crosses with champlevé enamels, 11th - 13th centuries

In addition to the type of enamel cross with curved ends of the "branches", there is a rarer "straight-ended" type, and the type with a rounding at the end of the branches. They are adjoined by a fairly numerous group of crosses, or cross-shaped pendants of very unusual shapes, which have no analogues either among the Byzantine or among Russian objects. As an analogy, only a cruciform ornament on a fairly numerous group of large pre-Mongol buttons, also decorated with enamel, can be cited. (Fig. 10)

Fig. 11 Old Russian pectoral crosses with niello, XI-XIII centuries

A separate, rather small group is made up of crosses decorated with niello. At the moment, we know no more than a dozen types of crosses with niello, one of which is relatively common, while the rest are quite rare. (Fig. 11)

Moving on to the "technical" side of the description of the material of interest to us, one cannot pass over in silence two questions of concern to any interested person, namely: the degree of rarity of the objects to which he turns his gaze, and the problem of the authenticity of these objects. Often, when communicating with various kinds of specialists, one hears the assertion that this or that pre-Mongol cross is "unique". Meanwhile, an experienced researcher knows that numerous crosses marked in publications with the highest sign of rarity are often found in dozens of copies. The point here, of course, is not the incompetence of the compilers of such rarity tables, but the very nature of the product we are considering. With rare exceptions, all body crosses were made by the molding method, which implies the presence of many tens, and sometimes hundreds of completely identical items. We know of many cases of re-casting, in which the quality of the product, of course, may deteriorate somewhat, but the type itself, and even its small parts persists. As far as can be judged, the crosses, at least in pre-Mongol times, were not melted down, so that all specimens that have fallen into the ground are waiting to be found. In other words, a truly unique cast cross is almost unbelievable. The practical rarity can be explained simply: unlike Byzantium, where there were large centers of mass casting, from which crosses spread throughout the empire, in Russia casting workshops were scattered throughout the state. The works of these local workshops for the most part did not go beyond their initially small region of existence, and if the place of production of any unusual type of crosses has not yet been found, it can be considered as very rare, but as soon as the center of production will be discovered, and dozens of the same or similar items are fed. In other words, the rarity of copper vest crosses is always relative. Silver crosses are objectively quite rare, but often due to their outward appearance, small size and lack of interesting decor, they do not attract serious attention of interested persons. To what has been said, we can only add that the greatest, although again relative rarity, can be represented by crosses of an unusual shape, having an unusual ornamental design, and even more so - small varieties.

Fig. 12 Old Russian pectoral crosses with cloisonné enamel of the XI-XII centuries

No matter how brief this sketch of a typological description of the crosses of vests of the pre-Mongol era is, it poses a number of questions for the thoughtful reader that are fundamental for understanding not only this narrow topic, but also the history of the Christianization of Russia as a whole. One cannot but amaze the fact of the iconographic and typological isolation of the Old Russian vest-crosses from the Byzantine samples. The Byzantine tradition, having formed the Russian type of cross-encolpion, actually did not affect the formation of types of crosses-vests. Earlier, when the only source of metal-plastic items was archaeological excavations, it was widely believed that encolpions were worn only by representatives of the elite. Now, thanks to the massive finds of encolpions in the settlements, the illegality of this statement has become clear. We are not talking about dividing the types of crosses - vests and encolpions - according to the "estate principle", but only about distinguishing two fundamentally different types of worn crosses: one type is completely focused on Byzantine samples, on imported specimens from the "cultural metropolis" (these are crosses-encolpions ), the other type - that is, small cross-vests - is almost completely focused on the local, Slavic culture.

Slavic cultural orientation is, first of all, an orientation towards paganism. However, this in no way means a confrontation between paganism and Christianity, rather the opposite: the cross as a symbol of belonging to the Christian community, as an object of personal piety, turned out to be endowed with the popular consciousness with amulet semantics. The cross-vest received a completely different meaning than the one it had in Byzantium - along with the Slavic lunettes, ridge pendants, spoon amulets, keys, hatchets, it turned into an instrument of interaction between a person - his master - with the forces of the outside world. Apparently, the body cross had protective functions - it is no coincidence that the ornamental design of the pre-Mongol crosses, which has no correspondences among the Byzantine material, finds many parallels in the design of the signet rings, which undoubtedly had a protective meaning.

"Dual faith" as one of the fundamental facts of Russian culture has not yet been studied well enough, due to the scarcity of sources, and here ancient Russian metal-plastic can be one of the most interesting and richest sources of new knowledge. A person who turns his gaze on her comes into contact with history itself in its still untouched, yet unknown guise, before him is a subject of research, rich and interesting, and what if not the desire for the unknown is the force that moves the heart and awakens the passion of the keen seeker truth ?!

"Take up your cross and follow Me"
(Mark 8, 34)

That the Cross is in everyone's life an orthodox person plays a big role known to all. This also applies to the Cross, as a symbol of the suffering of the Cross. Orthodox Christian, which he must endure with humility and trust in the will of God, and the Cross, as a fact of confessing Christianity, and great power, capable of protecting a person from hostile attacks. It is worth noting that many miracles were performed with the Sign of the Cross. Suffice it to say that one of the great Mysteries is performed by the Cross - the Mystery of the Eucharist. Mary of Egypt, having overshadowed the water with the sign of the cross, crossed the Jordan, Spyridon of Trimifuntsky turned the snake into gold, healed the sick and the possessed with the sign of the cross. But, perhaps, the most important miracle: the sign of the cross, imposed with deep faith, protects us from the power of Satan.
The Cross itself, like a terrible weapon shameful execution, chosen by Satan as the banner of lethality, caused overwhelming fear and horror, but thanks to Christ the Victor, he became a desired trophy, evoking joyful feelings. Therefore, Saint Hippolytus of Rome - the Apostolic husband - exclaimed: "And the Church has her trophy over death - this is the Cross of Christ, which she wears on herself," and Saint Paul - the Apostle of tongues - wrote in his Epistle: "I wish to boast (.. .) only by the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ "(Gal. 6:14).
The cross accompanies an Orthodox person throughout his life. “The vest”, as the pectoral cross was called in Russia, is placed on the baby in the Sacrament of Baptism in fulfillment of the words of the Lord Jesus Christ: “Whoever wants to follow Me, deny yourself, and take up your cross and follow Me” (Mark 8:34 ).
It is not enough just to put on the cross and consider yourself a Christian. The cross should express what is in the heart of a person. In some cases, it is deep christian faith, in others - formal, external belonging to Christian Church... This desire is often not the fault of our fellow citizens, but only a consequence of their insufficient enlightenment, years of Soviet anti-religious propaganda, apostasy from God. But the Cross is the greatest christian shrine, visible evidence of our redemption.
There are many different misunderstandings and even superstitions and myths associated with the pectoral cross today. Let's try to figure out this difficult issue together.
The pectoral cross is called so because it is worn under clothes, never showing off (outside the cross is worn only by priests). This does not mean that the pectoral cross must be hidden and hidden under any circumstances, but nevertheless it is not customary to deliberately put it on public display. It is established by the church charter to kiss your pectoral cross at the end evening prayers... In a moment of danger or when your soul is anxious, it will not be superfluous to kiss your cross and read on its back the words "Save and Preserve"
The sign of the Cross must be done with all attention, with fear, trembling and with extreme reverence. Putting three big fingers on your forehead, you need to say: “in the name of the Father”, then, lowering your hand in the same form on the chest “and the Son,” transferring your hand to right shoulder, then on the left: "and the Holy Spirit." Having made this holy sign of the cross on oneself, conclude with the word “Amen”. You can also say a prayer during the imposition of the Cross: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Amen".
The canonical form of the pectoral cross approved by the councils does not exist. According to St. Theodore the Studite - "a cross of every form is a true cross." As early as the 18th century, Saint Demetrius of Rostov wrote: “Not according to the number of trees, not according to the number of ends, the Cross of Christ is revered by us, but according to Christ Himself, the Most Holy Blood, Whom he was stained. Manifesting miraculous power, any Cross does not act by itself, but by the power of Christ crucified on it and the invocation of His Most Holy Name. " Orthodox tradition knows an infinite variety of types of crosses: four-, six-, eight-pointed; with a semicircle at the bottom, petal, drop-shaped, criniform and others.
Each line of the Cross has a deep symbolic meaning... On the reverse of the cross, the inscription “Save and preserve” is most often made, sometimes there are prayer inscriptions “May God rise again” and others.

Eight-pointed cross
The classic eight-pointed cross is the most widespread in Russia. The form of this Cross corresponds most of all to the Cross on which Christ was crucified. Therefore, such a Cross is no longer only a sign, but also an image of the Cross of Christ.
Above the long middle crossbar of such a cross there is a straight short crossbar - a tablet with the inscription “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews,” nailed by Pilate's order over the head of the Crucified Savior. The lower oblique crossbar, the upper end of which faces north, and the lower - to the south, symbolizes the foot, designed to serve to increase the torment of the Crucified, since the deceptive feeling of some support under the feet prompts the executed person to involuntarily try to relieve his weight by leaning on it, which only prolongs torment.
Dogmatically, the eight ends of the Cross mean eight main periods in the history of mankind, where the eighth is the life of the century to come, the Kingdom of Heaven, because one of the ends of such a Cross points upward to the sky. This also means that the path to the Heavenly Kingdom was opened by Christ through His Redemptive Feat, according to His word: “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14: 6).
The slanting crossbar, to which the Savior's feet were nailed, thus means that in the earthly life of people with the coming of Christ, who walked the earth with a sermon, the balance of all people without exception under the power of sin was disturbed. When the crucified Lord Jesus Christ is depicted on the eight-pointed Cross, the Cross as a whole becomes in full The crucifixion of the Savior and therefore contains in itself all the fullness of the power contained in the suffering of the Lord on the cross, the mysterious presence of Christ crucified.
There are two main types of images of the crucified Savior. The ancient view of the Crucifixion depicts Christ stretching his arms wide and straight along the transverse central crossbar: the body does not sag, but rests freely on the Cross. The second, later view, depicts the Body of Christ sagging, arms raised up and to the sides. The second view presents to the gaze the image of the suffering of Christ for our salvation; here you can see the human body of the Savior suffering in torment. This image is more characteristic of the Catholic Crucifixion. But such an image does not convey the entire dogmatic meaning of these sufferings on the cross. This meaning is contained in the words of Christ himself, who told his disciples and the people: “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to Me” (John 12, 32).

It was widespread among Orthodox believers, especially during the time of Ancient Russia, had six-pointed cross ... It also has an inclined crossbar, but the meaning is somewhat different: the lower end symbolizes unrepentant sin, and the upper end symbolizes liberation by repentance.

Cross "four-pointed"
The discussion about the “right” cross did not arise today. The dispute about which cross is correct, eight-pointed or four-pointed, was waged by the Orthodox and Old Believers, and the latter called the simple four-pointed cross "the seal of the antichrist." In defense of the four-pointed cross, St. John of Kronstadt spoke out, dedicated to this topic his Ph.D. thesis "On the Cross of Christ, in denouncing the imaginary Old Believers."
St. John of Kronstadt explains: “The” Byzantine ”four-pointed cross is actually a“ Russian ”cross, since, according to Church Tradition, a saint Equal to the Apostles Prince Vladimir took out of Korsun, where he was baptized, it was such a cross and was the first to install it on the banks of the Dnieper in Kiev. A similar four-pointed cross has been preserved in the Kiev Sophia Cathedral, carved on the marble board of the tomb of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, the son of St. Vladimir. " But, defending the four-pointed cross, St. John concludes that one and the other should be honored equally, since the very shape of the cross for believers does not have a fundamental difference.

Encolpion is a reliquary cross
Relics, or encolpions (Greek), came to Russia from Byzantium and were intended to store particles of relics and other relics. Sometimes the encolpion was used to preserve the Holy Gifts, which the first Christians in the era of persecution received for Communion in their homes and had with them. The most common reliquaries were made in the shape of a cross and decorated with icons, since they combined the power of several sacred objects that a person could wear on his chest.
The reliquary cross consists of two halves with recesses on the inner side, which form a cavity where the shrines are placed. As a rule, such crosses contain a piece of cloth, wax, incense, or just a bunch of hair. When filled, such crosses gain great protective and healing power.

Schematic cross, or "Golgotha"
Inscriptions and cryptograms on Russian crosses have always been much more diverse than on Greek ones. From the 11th century under the lower oblique crossbar eight-pointed cross a symbolic image of the head of Adam appears, and the bones of the hands lying in front of the head are depicted: right on left, as in burial or Communion. According to legend, Adam was buried on Golgotha (in Hebrew - "place of execution"), where Christ was crucified. These words of his clarify the prevailing in Russia to XVI century the tradition of producing the following designations near the image of "Calvary":
"M.L.R.B." - the frontal place was crucified byst, "G.G." - Mount Golgotha, "G.A." - the head of Adamov.
The letters "K" and "T" stand for a warrior's spear and a cane with a sponge, depicted along the cross.
The inscriptions are placed above the middle crossbar:
"IC" "XC" - the name of Jesus Christ;
and below it: "NIKA" - the Winner;
on the title or near it the inscription: "СНЪ" "БЖИЙ" - the Son of God,
but more often "I.N.TS.I" - Jesus of Nazareth the King of the Jews;
the inscription above the title: "ЦРЪ" "SLVY" - means the King of Glory.

Such crosses are supposed to be embroidered on the vestments of monks who have accepted the schema - a vow to observe especially strict ascetic rules of behavior. The cross "Calvary" is also depicted on the burial shroud, which signifies the preservation of the vows given at Baptism, like the white shroud of the newly baptized, which signifies cleansing from sin. During the consecration of temples and houses, the image of the Cross "Calvary" is also used on the walls of the building on the four cardinal points.

How to distinguish Orthodox cross from the Catholic?
Catholic Church uses only one image of the Cross - a simple, quadrangular one with an elongation of the lower part. But if the shape of the cross most often does not matter for believers and servants of the Lord, then the position of the Body of Jesus is a fundamental disagreement between these two religions. V Catholic Crucifixion the image of Christ has naturalistic features. It manifests all the human suffering, the torment that Jesus had to endure. His arms sag under the weight of his body, blood streaming down his face and from wounds on his arms and legs. The image of Christ on the Catholic cross is plausible, but this image of the dead man, while there is no hint of the triumph of victory over death. The Orthodox tradition depicts the Savior symbolically, His appearance expresses not the agony of the cross, but the triumph of the Resurrection. Jesus' palms are open, as if he wants to embrace all of humanity, giving them his love and opening the way to eternal life... He is God, and his whole image speaks about it.
Another principal position is the position of the legs on the Crucifixion. The fact is that among Orthodox shrines there are four nails with which Jesus Christ was supposedly nailed to the cross. This means that the arms and legs were nailed separately. The Catholic Church does not agree with this statement and keeps its three nails, which were used to secure Jesus on the cross. In the Catholic Crucifixion, Christ's feet are folded together and nailed down with one nail. Therefore, when you bring the cross to the temple for consecration, it will be carefully examined for the number of nails.
The inscription on the tablet attached above the head of Jesus, where the description of his offense should have been, is also different. But since Pontius Pilate did not find how to describe the guilt of Christ, the words "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" appeared on the tablet in three languages: Greek, Latin and Aramaic. Accordingly on catholic crosses You will see the inscription in Latin I.N.R.I., and in Russian Orthodox - I.N.C.I. (also found I.N.Ts.I.)

Another very important question- this is consecration pectoral cross ... If the cross is purchased in a temple shop, then, as a rule, it is consecrated. If the cross is purchased elsewhere or has unknown origin, then he must be taken to the church, ask one of the servants of the temple or a worker behind a candle box to transfer the cross to the altar. After examining the cross and in compliance with its Orthodox canons, the priest will serve the order in this case. Usually, the priest consecrates the crosses during the morning prayer service for the water. If it comes about a baptismal cross for a baby, then consecration is also possible during the Sacrament of Baptism itself.
At the consecration of the cross, the priest reads two special prayers in which he asks the Lord God to pour heavenly power into the cross and that this cross should preserve not only the soul, but also the body from all enemies, sorcerers and all evil forces... That is why many pectoral crosses bear the inscription “Save and Preserve!”.

In conclusion, I would like to note that the Cross must be honored with your correct, Orthodox attitude towards it. This is not just a symbol, an attribute of faith, but also an effective protection of a Christian from satanic forces. The cross must be honored both by deeds, and by your humility, and by those within your power, as much as possible for limited person, imitation of the feat of the Savior. In the order of the monastic tonsure, it is said that a monk must always have before his eyes the sufferings of Christ - nothing makes a person gather himself so clearly, nothing so clearly shows the need for humility as this saving memory. It would be nice for us to strive for this. It is then that the grace of God will actually work in us through the image of the sign of the cross. If we do it with faith, then we will truly feel God's power and know God's wisdom.

Material prepared by Natalia Ignatova

Old Russian pectoral crosses of the XI-XIII centuries. Despite the abundance of ancient crosses held both in the hands of archaeologists and in various collections, the layer of historical science associated with them has practically not been studied. In the overview, we will briefly talk about the types and types of Old Russian body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries.

There is no complete set of types of pre-Mongol body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries. Moreover, even clear principles of material classification have not been developed. Meanwhile, there are many publications devoted to this topic. They can be conditionally divided into two groups: publications of collections and articles devoted to archaeological finds. The famous two-volume edition of the collection of B.I. and V.N. Khanenko, which was published in Kiev. Now, after almost a century break, a number of catalogs of private collections with sections dedicated to the XI-XIII century crosses have been published: one can mention the Millennium of the Cross by A.K. Stanyukovich, “Catalog of Medieval Small Sculptures” by A.A. Chudnovets, the publication of the collection of the Vologda collector Surov, a description of the samples of pre-Mongol metal-plastic materials of the Odessa Museum of Numismatics. With all the difference in the scientific quality of the description, these publications are united by one thing - the randomness of the selection of the described material and the absence of a classification principle. If the second is associated with the undeveloped scientific topic, then the first only testifies to the absence of serious, representative collections that can be provided by their owner for publication. It is also worth mentioning the work of Nechitailo "Catalog of Old Russian pectoral crosses of the X-XIII centuries." This work suffers from the obvious incompleteness and extreme subjectivity of the author, who for some reason classifies cruciform overlays and even buttons as body crosses, and who has included a number of fakes in his catalog. It is hoped that the catalog of the collection of solid crosses of the 11th-13th centuries, which is now being prepared for publication, will become a pleasant exception. S.N. Kutasova - the vastness of the collection provides the authors with ample opportunities to build a typology of pre-Mongol pectoral crosses.

And, nevertheless, despite the existing problems, we can at least in general outline the entire abundance of pre-Mongol crosses known at the moment, highlighting several large groups of objects.

Old Russian pectoral crosses depicting the Crucifixion, XI-XIII centuries

The smallest group includes solid crosses with images. If on encolpions and solid icons of the 11th-13th centuries the range of images is quite extensive - we find images of Jesus, the Mother of God, archangels, saints, sometimes there are multi-figured scenes - then on vests we see only the image of the Crucifixion, sometimes with the forthcoming ones. Perhaps the only exception is a group of double-sided crosses depicting saints in medallions. There is also a small group of crosses - overflow from encolpions. At the moment, several dozen different types of pre-Mongol crosses with a crucifixion have been published. (Fig. 1) With the exception of a few basic ones, these types are represented by a fairly small number of known specimens.

Fig. 2 Pre-Mongol pectoral crosses with the image of the Crucifixion and the Mother of God, XI-XIII centuries

The rarity of "subject" body crosses in Russia in pre-Mongol times is a question requiring clarification. On the territory of Byzantium, from the Black Sea region to the Middle East, crosses with images - most often the Crucifixion or the Mother of God of Oranta - are found no less often than ornamental crosses, in Russia during this period we see a completely different ratio of occurrence. Body crosses with the image of the Mother of God, as far as we know, are quite rare in Russia. (Fig. 2) At the same time, one should take into account the popularity of body icons and encolpions with the image of the Mother of God and the saints, as well as the fact that among the types of crosses of the late XIV century. - the beginning of the 17th century. crosses with figured images predominate.

Fig. 3 Old Russian pectoral crosses of the Scandinavian types, XI-XIII centuries

Most of the pre-Mongol body crosses are decorated with ornaments. Only small leaden crosses dating from the beginning of the 11th century can be classified as non-ornamental, the simplest from a technical and artistic point of view. Classifying ornamental crosses is not an easy task. The types with "Scandinavian" and "Byzantine" ornaments stand out most naturally from the bulk. On the basis of comparison with northern material, no more than a few dozen "Scandinavian types" can be distinguished, which, however, were quite widespread. (Fig. 3) The situation with the "Byzantine" ornament is more complicated. On many crosses, originating from Byzantine territory, one can see an ornament consisting of circles pressed into the surface. (Fig. 4)

Fig. 4 Byzantine pectoral crosses found on the territory of Ancient Russia, XI-XIII centuries

There are various explanations for this pattern, the most famous of which boil down to the fact that before us is either a schematic representation of the five wounds of Christ, which then turned into an element of decor, or it is a protective symbolism that protects its wearer from the "evil eye". On Russian crosses, with the exception of one, but rather numerous group, such an ornament is rare, but at the same time, it almost always adorns the surface of very popular Slavic amulets depicting a "lynx", as well as amulets-hatchets, and is found on shields of a large group of rings, the influence on the type of which on the part of Byzantine objects of personal piety seems very doubtful. So this ornament can be called "Byzantine" rather conditionally, although from the formal point of view the parallels between the group of Old Russian and Byzantine crosses seem obvious.

Fig. 5 Old Russian pectoral crosses with a curved end of the blades, XI-XIII centuries.

The bulk of the ornamental adornments, almost 90 percent, is of primordial Russian origin. But before characterizing them, you need to turn your gaze to the very shape of the crosses. The morphology of Old Russian body crosses is striking in its diversity. Byzantium did not know such a diversity of forms; as far as we can judge, medieval Europe did not know it either. The phenomenon of this diversity requires a historical explanation. But before talking about this, it is necessary to at least briefly describe the most characteristic forms of the "branches" of pre-Mongol body crosses. The most natural thing would be to expect the dominance of the straight-ended form of "branches", as we find in Byzantium. However, this is not the case - the straight-pointed form is relatively rare compared to other forms of branches. Crosses of the "Maltese type", with "branches" expanding to the tip, which were quite popular in Byzantium, in Russia only a few types are known, and even then they are quite rare. The main mass is made up of crosses, the branches of which end with a "criniform", that is, a lily-like ending. It would be wrong to assert that this form of the "branch" of the cross is a purely Russian specificity. This form is also found in Byzantium, but in a very small proportional relation to equal-pointed crosses, and mainly in the Balkans. (Fig. 5)

Fig. 6 Old Russian cross-cut pendants of the 11-13th centuries.

A special and very numerous group is made up of the so-called cross-shaped pendants. Their semantics are not completely clear - they equally contain in their form elements of both a Christian cross and a pagan amulet. The difficulty in attributing them to Christian subjects also lies in the fact that the motif of the cross is not alien to paganism. When we see ovals intertwined in a cruciform manner, four circles connected in a cruciform manner, a rhombus with balls at the end, or a curved pendant resembling a cross in shape, we cannot say with certainty whether Christian influence was reflected in such a composition, or whether it is purely pagan symbolism. On the basis of archaeological finds, it can only be argued that these objects existed in the same environment as the cross-vests, which gives some grounds for considering them in the context of objects of personal piety, albeit with some reservations. (Fig. 6)

The main argument for dividing the cruciform appendages into "Christian" and "pagan" groups (both designations are conditional) can be the presence or absence of numerous similar items originating from Byzantine territory. In the case of "cross-connected" pendants, we must recognize them to a greater extent as objects of Christian culture than pagan, since there are numerous analogues originating from the entire Byzantine territory, and in Kherson this type, as far as can be judged, was one of the most common types of crosses -telnikov. At the same time, one cannot fail to notice that on pendants of this type, almost all crosses included in the circle have curved, or close to curved ends. Thus, even in relation to this type, which has many analogies among the Byzantine material, we cannot speak of a complete borrowing of the form from Byzantium.

Old Russian cross-included lunars of the 7th-13th centuries

An interesting example of a pagan-Christian synthesis is the moon, which includes a cross. Knowing the many pre-Christian types of lunnits, it can be argued without doubt that the cross that arose on some types of linnits (however, quite rare) is a purely Christian element, and is a consequence of the emerging "dual faith" - that is, an organic combination of pagan and Christian ideas within a single model the world. It is well known that the "dual faith" in Russia within the limits of folk culture persisted until very late, and the existence of lunettes with a cross, which should be included both in the vaults of pre-Mongol body crosses and pagan amulets, is its brightest manifestation. (Fig. 7)

You can read more about lunits and other Slavic amulets in the article "".

In parallel with the semantic typology of the cross-vest I outlined, several typological groups can be distinguished, based on the material and technique of making the crosses. A serious historian striving for subjects of the "first level" cannot but ask the question - are there golden vest crosses? Such items, of course, existed, but, apparently, only in princely use. There are only a few known gold crosses originating from the territory of Russia. At the same time, on the territory of Byzantium, such items are not an absolute rarity. Solid gold leaf crosses with semiprecious stones are found both in the Western antique market and in archaeological reports, however, full-weight gold crosses are quite rare, and in the West, as well as in Russia, they are almost impossible to find on the antique market.

Silver body crosses of the 11th-13th centuries represent a fairly small group of objects. Most of them are small crosses of simple shapes, with "branches" ending in beads, and rather large crosses with "Scandinavian" ornament. Silver crosses of unusual shapes are rare. Burial crosses made of sheet silver appear in archaeological publications, but in practice they are extremely rare.

Old Russian stone body crosses, XI - XIII centuries.

The group of enamel crosses is very numerous. The standard "Kiev" type of enamel cross is one of the most common types of pre-Mongol crosses. The variety of subtypes within the general type of the simplest enamel cross is quite large. In addition to the most basic division into two subtypes according to the number of balls with which the "branch" ends, they differ in the colors of the enamel, as well as in the decor of the reverse side: if most of these crosses are double-sided, then one-sided crosses with a smooth reverse side can be attributed to a rarer type , with an engraved cross on the reverse side or with an inscription, most often unreadable due to the quality of the casting.

Fig. 8 Pre-Mongol pectoral crosses with champlevé enamels, XI - XIII centuries.

Fig. 9 Old Russian pectoral crosses with niello, XI-XIII centuries

Turning to the "technical" side of the description of the material of interest to us, one cannot pass over in silence two questions that excite any interested person, namely: the degree of rarity of the objects to which he turns his gaze, and the problem of the authenticity of these objects. Often, when communicating with various kinds of specialists, one hears the assertion that this or that pre-Mongol cross is "unique". Meanwhile, an experienced researcher knows that numerous crosses marked in publications with the highest sign of rarity are often found in dozens of copies. The point here, of course, is not the incompetence of the compilers of such rarity tables, but the very nature of the product we are considering. With rare exceptions, all body crosses were made by the molding method, which implies the presence of many tens, and sometimes hundreds of completely identical items. We know of many cases of re-casting, in which the quality of the product, of course, may deteriorate somewhat, but the type itself, and even its small details, remain. As far as can be judged, the crosses, at least in pre-Mongol times, were not melted down, so that all specimens that have fallen into the ground are waiting to be found. In other words, a truly unique cast cross is almost unbelievable. The practical rarity can be explained simply: unlike Byzantium, where there were large centers of mass casting, from which crosses spread throughout the empire, in Russia casting workshops were scattered throughout the state. The works of these local workshops for the most part did not go beyond their initially small region of existence, and if the place of production of any unusual type of crosses has not yet been found, it can be considered as very rare, but as soon as the center of production will be discovered, and dozens of the same or similar items are fed. In other words, the rarity of copper vest crosses is always relative. Silver crosses are objectively quite rare, but often, due to their outward appearance, small size and lack of interesting decor, they do not attract serious attention of interested persons. To what has been said, we can only add that the greatest, although again relative rarity, can be represented by crosses of an unusual shape, having an unusual ornamental design, and even more so - small varieties.

Old Russian pectoral crosses with cloisonné enamel of the XI-XII centuries