VTG/ ANTIQUE SOLID SILVER LARGE BOLD 2 1/8" 13.1g RUSSIAN BAROQUE ORTHODOX CROSS For Sale

Antique or vintage large and massive (approx. 2 1/8" tall withsolid bale; weight approx. 13.1 g) Orthodox Cross pendant featuring an 18thcentury Russian baroque-style ornate openwork design with the center ofthe Cross surrounded by ornamental circle similar to ancient Sun or solar crosssymbols and rich symbolism of images, ornaments and texts inscribed on bothsides in Church Slavonic.In a Christian context, the"Sun Cross" design could symbolically represent Jesus as "thesun of righteousness" (Malachi 4:2) and His preaching, "I am thelight of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness" (John8:12). The edges of the Cross on both sides bear text of theOrthodox prayer to the Holy Cross based on Psalm 68 of David the King. Theobverse bears an image of the three-bar Savior's Cross flanked with the twoInstruments of the Passion standing above the Golgotha skull-shaped hill,whereas the reverse displays full text of the Orthodox hymn to the Most HolyTheotokos (Mother of God) and Ever-Virgin Mary "All of creation rejoicethin Thee, o full of grace".

The Cross offered for sale appears to have been hand made from asolid silver alloy. There are no visible silver hallmarks, but the pendant hasbeen tested and showed as a solid silver alloy between .875 and .925("sterling") purity with red color of the acid test that usuallycorresponds to the old Russian "84" purity standard or higher.Available catalogs describe silver crosses of similar design dated c. 17th –18th century Russia (please see the last picture for a reference). All or mostof the inscriptions preserved on the cross offered for sale appear to beauthentic traditional Slavonic abbreviations characteristic of the Russian “OldBelievers” type of crosses. However, it cannot be excluded that the crossoffered for sale was skillfully recreated at a later period of time followingthe traditional design. The item has visual antique appearance with signs ofaging wear that might include reduced quality of artwork, deformations of theoriginal shape, scratches, dents and patches of discoloration or patina. Italso shows few minor imperfections of metal casting suggesting that it was madeby a smaller-scale silversmith maker. It has been subjected to gentle manualcleaning and polishing to remove some of the original dark patina. The size andweight of the Cross are shown on the photographs for this listing.

The obverse displays animage of the three-bar Suppedaneum cross which is venerated as the trueSavior's Cross in the Slavonic Orthodox and some Eastern Catholic churches.Such a cross has three horizontal crossbeams: the top one represents the"INRI" nameplate, and the bottom one, a footrest. The footrest bar isdepicted pointing up, toward Heaven, on Christ's right hand side where thePenitent thief, St. Dismas was crucified.

The top end of thevertical crossbar of the pendant shows a Church Slavonic abbreviationmeaning "King of Glory". The left and right side ends of thecentral horizontal crossbar of the pendant bear the Sacred Name of Jesus Christ inscribedas the "IC XC" Greek Christogram, the "IC" on theleft, and the "XC" on the right.

Parallel to the verticalcrossbar, there are images of the two Instruments of the Passion which aresubjects to adoration along with the Cross, the Holy Lance (spear) of aRoman soldier and the Holy Sponge attached to the end of a cane.

The bottom end of thevertical crossbar shows "HKA" monogram, an abbreviated Cyrillicversion of the ancient Greek "NIKA" symbol meaning the “Conqueror” or"Victorious" which is often used as a part of the title of Jesus toglorify His victory over sin and death achieved on the Cross.

The power of sin anddeath defeated by Jesus is also visualized using a symbolic image of theGolgotha Hill, the elevated site on which the Savior’s Cross stands. The Biblesays it means "the place of the skull" in Hebrew. According toancient tradition of the Church, the place of Crucifixion of Jesus was rightabove the burial place of the first man, Adam, whose skull is often depictedbelow the Savior’s Cross.

There are fouradditional, diagonal crossbeams superimposed on the circle surrounding thecenter of the cross, likely an artistic depiction of the rays of light comingfrom the Holy Precious and Life-Giving Cross of the Savior. Such a symbol mightrefer to Psalm 27 “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?”and the preaching of Christ: "I am the light of the world. Whoever followsme will never walk in darkness" (John 8:12). In addition, the diagonalcrossbeams usually refer to the cross of Holy Apostle Andrew. St. Andrew isconsidered the Founder and the first Bishop of the Christian Church ofByzantium, and is the patron saint of the Ecumenical Patriarchate ofConstantinople. St. Andrew is believed to have been crucified on the Cruxdecussata (X-shaped cross, also known as "Saltire").

The edges of the pendant bear partially worn-out Church Slavonictext of the Orthodox prayer to the Holy Precious and Life-Giving Cross based onPsalm 68 beginning with "ДА ВОСКРЕСНЕТ БОГ И РАЗЫДУТСЯ ВРАЗИ ЕГО..."meaning "MAY GOD ARISE AND MAY HIS ENEMIES BE SCATTERED". Thispsalm-based prayer is traditionally inscribed on the reverse of the OldBelievers' Orthodox body (Baptism) cross pendants. It is a powerful reminder toa person wearing the cross to invoke God through this prayer and through makinga sign of the Cross to provide His protection against the evil spirits (God'senemies), and thereby is considered a version of the Exorcism prayer.

The reverse displays Church Slavonic text of the Orthodoxhymn to the Most Holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary composed by St. Johnof Damascus (also known as St. John Damascene), one of the Holy Fathers ofthe Eastern Orthodox Church who is best known for his strong andself-sacrificial defense of icons during the 8th century Byzantineiconoclasm.

The ChurchSlavonic text of the hymn, which is also sung during the Divine Liturgy of St.Basil the Great, is as follows: "Ѡ Tебѣ радуетсѧ, Благодатнаѧ, всѧкаѧтварь, Ангельскїй соборъ и Человѣческїй родъ, ωсвѧщенный храме, и раюсловесный, Дѣвственнаѧ похвало, из неѧже Богъ воплотисѧ, и Младенецъ бысть,прежде вѣкъ сый Богъ нашъ, ложесна бо Tвоѧ Престолъ сотвори, и чрево Tвоепространнѣе Небесъ содела; ω Tебѣ радуетсѧ, Благодатнаѧ, всѧкаѧ тварь,слава Tебѣ!"

The English translationwould sound approximately as follows: "All of creation rejoiceth in Thee,o full of grace, the choirs of Angels, and the race of men, o sanctified templeand rational paradise, the glory of virgins, from Whom God was incarnate andbecame a child, He that is our God before the ages. For He made Thy body into athrone, and Thy womb broader than the heavens. All of creation rejoiceth inThee, o full of grace: glory to Thee!"

Please examine all photographs carefully and do your own research if necessary. Please note that photographs are an important part of the item's description. The measuring meter and electronic scale are not for sale, and might be photographed with the item in order to provide a size and weight reference.Please ask all questions before making a purchase.There are no guarantees with the listing because most items are original vintage or antique objects that are quite old and could be fragile. All items are sold "as is" with no returns because of a change of mind offered. Will ship to the USA only.