CC0 · no rights reserved
Hand cross
From the collection of National Museum of African Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
The cross is perhaps the most pervasive symbolic artifact in Ethiopia. Priests use hand crosses to bestow blessings on and receive salutations from the faithful. Made of iron, copper alloy or wood, hand crosses vary considerably. The cube at the base of the shaft symbolizes the Ark of the Covenant, which is believed to have come to Ethiopia from Jerusalem, and the tomb of Adam, which is believed to have been at the foot of Christ's cross.
National Museum of African Art’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineHand cross. 16th century. Ethiopian Orthodox. National Museum of African Art, Museum purchase. CC0.
