The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 4, 2024

Processional Cross

Processional Cross

c. 1440–1450
(Italian, 1413/14–1495/96)
Italy, The Marches, 15th century
silver, gilt-silver, and repoussé, over wood
Overall: 72.7 x 61 x 12.7 cm (28 5/8 x 24 x 5 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1926.243
Location: 117B Italian Renaissance

Description

This remarkable object, meant to be carried in religious processions within a great church, is an example of the high level of skill achieved by 15th-century Italian silversmiths. The cross was made from hammered, chased, and gilded sheets of silver attached to a wooden core. The figures are made in repoussé, a technique of hammering the silver from beneath to create a design. On the front of the cross is the figure of Christ flanked by the seated Virgin and Saint John, with God the Father blessing from above. The back of the cross includes the figure of Christ in Majesty at the center, with the Evangelists at the end of each arm.
  • ?-1926
    (Luigi Grassi, Florence, Italy, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1926-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Fliegel, Stephen N. Resplendent Faith: Liturgical Treasuries of the Middle Ages. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press, 2009. Pg. 40, fig. 36
    Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 275
  • Gothic Art 1360-1440. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 6-September 15, 1963).
  • {{cite web|title=Processional Cross|url=false|author=Pietro Vannini|year=c. 1440–1450|access-date=04 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1926.243