cross

The Hill of Crosses, Lithuania. Upon a small hill, north of the industrial town of Siauliai, there is to be found an extraordinary mass of crosses. Many are left by pilgrims drawn to the site.

Figure or object formed by the intersection (usually at right angles) of two or more lines, surfaces, or pieces of material. The use of the cross as an emblem is of great antiquity in many cultures. The symbol of the cross has been widely used since the 3rd century in Christianity as a reminder of Jesus' crucifixion. The empty cross (as opposed to the crucifix) emphasizes the idea of Jesus' resurrection from the dead.

The Latin cross is the most commonly used; other types are the Greek cross, St Anthony's cross, and St Andrew's cross. Symbolic crosses were used by pre-Christian cultures; for example, the ancient Egyptian ankh (St Anthony's cross with a loop at the top) was a symbol of life, and the swastika was used by Hindus, Buddhists, Celts, and North American Indians before it was adopted by the Nazis. In pre-Columbian America, the cross was the symbol of the rain god; in ancient Gaul it represented the sun.

The cross (as distinct from the crucifix) has an enormous number of uses as an object, mark, or manual sign, in the liturgy, in many of the arts, in devotional practices, and in religious dress. It has a number of symbolic interpretations. It symbolizes atonement and salvation; the triumph of good over evil; God's concern for creation and humanity; and an example of a perfect life.

The cross is the most commonly used charge (a design placed on a shield) in heraldry, reflecting the importance of Christian imagery in the medieval period. There are many variations on the basic design; for example, crosses may have one or more pointed limbs, forked or branched limbs, or fleurs-de-lis on their limbs.

Its more prominent ritual and symbolic uses include the anointing of 12 crosses on the inner walls of a Roman Catholic church, symbolizing its consecration; the carrying of archiepiscopal crosses before metropolitan bishops within the area of their jurisdiction, also processional crosses at the head of solemn ecclesiastical processions; the wearing of crosses, suspended from the neck by a chain or coloured cord, by cardinals, bishops, abbots, and abbesses (in the Eastern Orthodox Church, they are worn by archimandrites).

In architecture, sanctuary crosses marked the verge of a sanctuary. These and boundary or monumental crosses consist of an upright pillar or obelisk set in a heavy socket level with the ground. The oldest examples are Scandinavian and have carved inscriptions in runes; some marked boundaries, but most indicate the grave of a king, bishop, or hero. The island of Iona once contained 360 such crosses, but only one, that of St Martin, is now standing. In England, Charing Cross is a reminder of a series of memorial crosses erected in 1290 by Edward I. Town or market crosses were pulpits from which sermons and addresses could be given; in Chichester and Cheddar they consist of open vaulted structures. In London, St Paul's Cross, erected in 1259 by Henry III near St Paul's Cathedral, served this function. (The present cross dates from 1911.) In Scotland, town crosses lost their religious character early on, and were used for royal and civic proclamations.