Celtic cross

For the band, see Celtic Cross (band).
Celtic Cross in Llanynys, North Wales
A Christian high cross at Monasterboice in Ireland

Celtic cross (Irish: cros Cheilteach,[1] Scottish Gaelic: crois Cheilteach, Manx: crosh Cheltiagh, Welsh: croes Geltaidd, Cornish: krows keltek, Breton: kroaz geltek) is a symbol that combines a cross with a ring surrounding the intersection; the cross' stem being longer than the other threes' intersection. It belongs to a wider group of crosses with a nimbus.[2] The Celtic Christians combined the Christian cross with the nimbus to create high crosses – a free-standing cross made of stone which was often richly decorated.[3] The Celtic Revival shape, usually decorated with interlace and other motifs from Insular art, became popular for funerary monuments and other uses, and has remained so, spreading well beyond Ireland.

Christian usage

Ireland and Britain

Early forms: cross slab, St. Madoes, Perthshire, Scotland
Early forms: pillar stone, Gallarus Oratory, County Kerry, Ireland

A distinctive Insular tradition of erecting monumental stone high crosses began by the 8th century. Inspiration for high crosses came from earlier versions created from wood while some were faced in metalwork. A variety of 'Celtic' crosses bear inscriptions in ogham: an early medieval alphabet. Standing crosses in Ireland and areas under Irish influence tend to be shorter and more massive than their Anglo-Saxon equivalents, which have mostly lost their headpieces. Irish examples with a head in Celtic cross form include the Cross of Kells, Ardboe High Cross, the crosses at Monasterboice, the Cross of the Scriptures, Clonmacnoise and those in Scotland at Iona and the Kildalton Cross, which may be the earliest to survive in good condition. Surviving, free-standing crosses are located in Cornwall, including St Piran's cross at Perranporth, and Wales.[4] Other stone crosses are found in the former Northumbria and Scotland, and further south in England, where they merge with the similar Anglo-Saxon cross making tradition, in the Ruthwell Cross for example. Most examples in Britain were destroyed during the Protestant Reformation. By about 1200 A.D., the initial wave of cross building came in to an end in Ireland.

Popular legend in Ireland says that the Celtic Christian cross was introduced by Saint Patrick or possibly Saint Declan, though there are no examples from this early period. It has often been claimed that Patrick combined the symbol of Christianity with the sun cross to give pagan followers an idea of the importance of the cross. By linking it with the idea of the life-giving properties of the sun, these two ideas were linked to appeal to pagans. Other interpretations claim that placing the cross on top of the circle represents Christ's supremacy over the pagan sun.

Notable Celtic high crosses in Ireland
Notable Celtic high crosses in Scotland

Continental Europe

France

There are similar crosses in France. The correct expression to define the continental crosses is "cross with nimbus" (croix nimbée in French). Their design is different, but all the French examples are quite analogous in shape to each other. They are found mainly in the western part of France: in Normandy, Brittany, and Limousin as far as Auvergne in the centre. Most of them were made around the 15th century. One can be seen on the spire of Sainte-Croix cathedral at Orléans, in the Loire valley.

In Lower Normandy, in Cotentin, many churches have kept their tombstones decorated with a Celtic cross.[5][6]

Galicia

In Galicia, a distinct form of cross similar to the Insular Celtic shapes is found, often topping horreos (granaries) as a protective measure against any kind of evil.[7] They can also be found atop churches and in cemeteries since the beginning of the 20th century. Insular Celtic shapes are unusual in cruceiros (high crosses), a very characteristic Galician style[8] that combines a Celtic cross with a Celtic simple knot. It is similar to the St Maur cross at Glanfeuil Abbey.[9][10]

Modern times

Celtic Revival

The Celtic Revival of the mid-19th century led to an increased use and creation of Celtic crosses in Ireland. In 1853, casts of several historical high crosses were exhibited at the Dublin Industrial Exhibition. In 1857, Henry O'Neill published Illustrations of the Most Interesting of the Sculptured Crosses of Ancient Ireland. These two events stimulated interest in the Celtic cross as a symbol for a renewed sense of heritage within Ireland.

New versions of the high cross were designed for fashionable cemetery monuments in Victorian Dublin in the 1860s. From Dublin, the revival spread to the rest of the country and beyond. Since the Celtic Revival, the ringed cross became an emblem of Celtic identity, in addition to its more traditional religious symbolism.[11]

Modern interest in the symbol increased because of Alexander and Euphemia Ritchie. The two worked on the Isle of Iona in Scotland from 1899 to 1940 and popularised use of the Celtic cross in jewelry.[12] Using the celtic cross in fashion is still popular today.

Since its revival in the 1850s, the Celtic cross has been used extensively as grave markers. Straying from medieval usage, when the symbol was typically used for a public monument. The Celtic cross now appears in various retail items. Both the Gaelic Athletic Association and the Northern Ireland national football team have used versions of the Celtic cross in their logos and advertising.

White nationalist usage

A Nationalist Celtic cross flag

A square cross interlocking with or surrounded by a circle is one of the most popular symbols used by individuals and organisations to represent white nationalism, white supremacy,[13][14] Neo-Nazism,[15] and white pride;[16] it is used as the logo for white nationalist website Stormfront.org.[17] This stems from the use of the Celtric cross by Norwegian Nazis during World War II.[18]

In Germany, a "stylized" Celtic cross was adopted by a prohibited political party (VSBD/PdA) leading to a ban of the symbol if used within a context of promoting racism (cf. Strafgesetzbuch section 86a). Although there were doubts on the constitutionality of the ban,[19] it was upheld in a decision of the supreme court.[20]

In Italy, there is a similar ban, deriving from Legge Mancino[21] (the "Mancino Act", from the Minister of Interior who enacted the law), although there are some examples of the use of the Celtic cross as a Roman Catholic symbol in Northern Italy.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Dictionary of Irish Terms
  2. ↑ A nimbus is an indication of radiant light drawn around the head of a saint or a crosfs, related to a halo.
  3. ↑ Werner 98
  4. ↑ Langdon, Arthur G. (1896) Old Cornish Crosses. Truro: J. Pollard
  5. ↑ Frédéric Scuvée, Les croix nimbées du Cotentin in Heimdal n°2, 1971.
  6. ↑ Stéphane Laîné, Baligan ou les avatars d'un émir », in Remembrances et Resveries, Recueil d'articles en hommage à Jean Batany rassemblés et édités par Huguette Legros, Denis Hüe et Joël Grisward, Orléans, Éditions Paradigme.
  7. ↑ Mariño Ferro, Xosé Ramón (2010). Dicionario de etnografia e antropoloxía de Galiza (1 ed.). Vigo: Nigra Trea. p. 212. ISBN 978-84-95364-84-5.
  8. ↑ "There are many types of (church roof) crosses, but the interlaced ones are the most characteristic and the most flamboyant of all those to be found throughout the country (Galicia). They are made up, in most cases, by a Christian cross of equal arms, not unlike a Pate or Greek cross, with a circle that surrounds it; along with this, the cross is ornamented with interlaces in the way of the purest early Celtic art" ("Hai cruces antefixas de moitos tipos pero son as entrelazadas as máis chamativas e características de todas as que podemos atopar polo país. Están formadas na maior parte dos casos por unha cruz cristiá xeralmente de brazos iguais, do tipo da cruz de paté ou grega, e un circulo que a rodea; xunto con isto está ornamentada cun entrelazado da máis pura arte celta primitiva") Romero, Bieito (2009). Xeometrías máxicas de Galicia. Vigo: Ir Indo. pp. 122–176. ISBN 978-84-7680-639-5.
  9. ↑ The meaning of the St Maur cross (French)
  10. ↑
  11. ↑ Stephen Walker, "Celtic Revival Crosses", Celtic Arts website, accessed 22 November 2008
  12. ↑ "A Brief History of the Ritchies", Alexander Ritchie website, accessed 20 Nov 208
  13. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20150414162330/http://www.scrippsmedia.com/tmj4/news/165199206.html. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  14. ↑ http://www.adl.org/combating-hate/hate-on-display/c/celtic-cross.html#.VSQKEHBiHws
  15. ↑ http://www.adl.org/combating-hate/hate-on-display/c/celtic-cross.html#.VSQKEHBiHws
  16. ↑ "Hate Symbols: Celtic Cross – From A Visual Database of Extremist Symbols, Logos and Tattoos", Anti-Defamation League, accessed 23 July 2010
  17. ↑ https://books.google.ie/books?id=_cGjWX8_RpgC&pg=PA10&dq=%22celtic+cross%22+stormfront&hl=en&sa=X&ei=7gokVavzFY3watf5gIgH&ved=0CBgQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=%22celtic%20cross%22%20stormfront&f=false
  18. ↑ http://www.adl.org/combating-hate/hate-on-display/c/celtic-cross.html
  19. ↑ Andreas Stegbauer, "The Ban of Right-Wing Extremist Symbols according to Section 86a of the German Criminal Code", German Law Journal, No.2, 1 Feb 2007, accessed 22 November 2008 Archived 12 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  20. ↑ Pressemitteilung Nr. 209/08
  21. ↑ Legge 205/1993

References

External links

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