Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 05.djvu/704

* CROSS. 608 CROSS. tian Kill. 'I'lie Spanish conciuerois were aston- ished I" lind il an object of religious veneration among the natives of America. But the dealli of Christ by eruiilixion led Christians to regard it with peculiar feelings of veneration and to ad<i])t it as a symbol with express reference to the central fact' of their religion. It was seen everywhere in Christian countries, in the home as well as in the church, where it formed an in- variable ornament of the altar. The Iconoclastic ))arty contended against the worship of the cross, but ibc tUuircli, while defining the sense in which worship niiglit be olTered to it, condemned then- views. Though the word hitreia, adoration, is used of the veneration paid to the cross, it is explained as only relative, and referred back to the person of the Crucified. This species of veneration, which is sometimes misunderstood on account of the restricted use of the word -wor- ship" in modern English, is solemnly paid in the Roman Catholic Church to pieces of the true cross (considered the most sacred of all relics) whenever exposed, and to other crosses, espe- cially on Good Friday. The cross on the high altar, which has been "wrapped in a violet covei- ing throughout Passion-tide, is unveiled during the singing of the anthem "Behold the wood of the Cross, on which the Saviour of the world hung." It is then laid on the altar-steps, and the celebrant and other sacred ministers approach with oenullections and kiss it. After this a smaller cross is ofl'ered to the congregation, kneeling at the altar-rails, to be kissed. (See Cardinal Wiseman. Lectures on the Offices and Ceremonies of Hohj Week, London, 1839.) The earliest account of the solemn veneration of the cross occurs in the Peregrinatio SanctcB Silvia; ad Loca Hancta. recently discovered by Gamur- rini and published in Rome, 1887-88, which de- scribes a pilgrimage to Jerusalem during the episcopate of Saint Cyril', probably in the year 384 or 385. The sign of the cross has been made in Christian worship, since the second cen- tury at least, as an act of homage to God in re- nieinbrance of the Redemption, and of blessing to the person or object over which the sign is made. It is differently made in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Churches, and has been disused among most Protestants, as a ceremony of human inven- tion tending to superstition. A cross was in the Middle Ages prefixed to most inscriptions and documents as a sort of consecration, and placed before signatures for the same reason ; the latter practice is still retained by Roman Catholic bishops. The forms given to crosses in art are endless : but the two leading types are the Latin cross, or crua; immissa. supposed to be that on which Christ suffered, and the Greek cross, both of which are subject to many fantastic variations. The Greek crciss forms the well-known cross of Saint George, which, adopted from the legends of that hero, was the national ensign of the English previous to the union with Scotland. ( See Union .Jack. ) The cross of Saint Andrew, or crux deeiissitta. consisted of two shafts of equal length crossed diagonally at the middle. According to the legend, this was the form of cross on which Saint Andrew, the national saint of Scotlan<l, sull'cred nuirtyrdom. As the Seottisli ensign, it is now blended with the cross of Saint George in the I'nion Jack. The Maltese cross, with its eii;ht forked ends, was a form used by the orders of loiights. It is similar to the cross- let form where small crosses are formed at the ends. Sanctiaky, boundary, or monumental CROSSES, as they are called, consist of an upright Hat pillar, or obelisk, covered with sculptured devices, and set in a socket level with the ground. Occasionally they appear to have marked boundaries, but more frequently were monuments over the graves of heroes, kings, bishops. et<'. In some instances they probably marked the erge of a sanctuarv. The older of these crosses are said to be Scandinavian or Danish, and such are known as runic crosses, being inscribed w-ith runes. We ai'e told that the island of lona at one time possessed 360 crosses, but all are now destroyed or dispersed, except one. called Saint .Martin's Cross, standing in the grounds of the cathedral. It is a column of compact mica schist, 14 feet high, 18 inches broad, and 6 inches thick, and is fixed in a pedestal formed out of a massive block of red granite, about 3 feet high. In connection with certain ancient religious houses in Ireland, there were some very fine crosses of this kind, the most gigantic and im- pressive which still exists being that of Saint Luke's in the County of Louth. The prominence of such crosses extended to the East, where the (iothic and other tribes of the Caucasus, Georgia, and Armenia also used them prominently in church sculpture and in cemeteries. Memorial crosses are those which were erect- ed in memory of some beloved object, or in com- memoration of some event of local importance. In England there are some superb crosses of this kind; they are popularly called .A'or»io»( crosses. This species of cross resembled a Gothic turret set on the ground, or on a base of a few steps, and was erected by Edward I. (1200) in memory of his queen. Eleanor, being placed on the spots where the body rested in its funeral progress to Westminster. Of the nine, two remain, at Northampton and Waltham. Town or market crosses were erected as stands to preach from, or in commemoration of events regarding which it was deemed proper to evoke pious feelings. As these structures were incorpo- rated with or surmounted by a enicifix. the term cross was so indelibly associated with them that it survived the religious character of the fabrics. The earliest examples of this kind consisted, probably, of tall crucifixes of wood, such as are still seen by the wayside in some Continental countries. Afterwards, stone shafts w'ould be substituted : and according to the increase of market revenues, or progress of taste, these town crosses assumed that imposing character which they latterly possessed. Of the larger orna- mental crosses of this kind, there are some strik- ing specimens in England, such as that at Cheddar in Somersetshire, and that at Malmes- bury in Wiltshire: both are open-vaulted struc- tures, with a commodious space beneath, as a refuge for poor market-folks duriiig rain, and surmounted with a kind of Goth* turret. At Chichester. Bristol, and Winchester, the market crosses, while similar in form, are of a higher architectural quality. Adjoining Saint Paul's in London, stood Paul's Cross, a structure which we read of as early as 12.50, in the reign of Henry III. It was essentially a town jireaching cross, and is associated with some interesting occurrences in history. Before this cross the