Cross of victory

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The cross of victory in the coat of arms of Asturias

The Cross of Victory ( Cruz de la Victoria ) is a high medieval altar cross closely linked to the history of Asturias , which appears on both its flag and its coat of arms . It has the shape of a Latin cross and is in the Cámara Santa of the Cathedral of Oviedo in Spain kept.

history

Legend

According to tradition, the wooden core of the Cross of Victory was that of the cross that the Virgin Mary gave to King Pelayo before the Battle of Covadonga (718 or 722) and that he carried with him in the battle, the first victorious battle against the Muslims after them Campaign of conquest in Spain. The legend did not emerge until the 16th century, but gave the cross its name.

Facts

King Alfonso III of Asturias and his wife, Queen Jimena of Navarre, donated the cross to Oviedo Cathedral on Easter 908, shortly before the king's abdication. The cross was made according to the inscription in the "Castle of Gauzón". This castle was built by King Alfonso III in 905 along with several churches. Donated to Oviedo Cathedral.

A C 14 dating of the wood showed that it came from a tree that was grown during the reign of Alfonso III. was felled and does not date from the time of King Pelayo.

Originally, the cross served as an altar ornament and presentation cross . In times of war it was taken from the Cámara Santa and placed on the main altar of the cathedral in order to achieve peace and victory over the enemy.

During the Asturian miners' strike in 1934 , the revolutionaries detonated a bomb under the Cámara Santa. The items kept there, including the Cross of Victory , suffered severe damage. They were restored until 1942 . However, no precautions were taken to later enable the original substance to be distinguished from the added parts.

In 1977 the Cross of Victory was stolen from the Cámara Santa along with other items and dismantled by the thief. Before he could sell the loot, however, he was caught.

On the occasion of the now re-needed restoration, a commission was chaired by the Provost formed to appoint to the process and monitor. After the work was completed, the cross returned to Cámara Santa on September 14, 1985.

description

Schematic distribution of the precious stones on the face of the cross

The core of the Cross of Victory is made up of two pieces of wood connected in the center of the cross. There is also a compartment for relics , which originally probably contained a fragment of the cross of Jesus .

The arms of the cross start from a central medallion, widen slightly towards the ends, which end in three semicircles. The lower end of the cross, which serves as the base, is flatter to leave space for a holder so that the cross can be placed on a pole as a presentation cross. It is 920 mm high and 720 mm wide, the diameter of the central medallion is 140 mm. The side arms of the cross each measure 230 mm. The upper arm measures 350 mm and the lower arm 430 mm. The thickness of the cross arms is approximately 25 millimeters. The cross of victory weighs just under 5 kg.

The front of the cross is covered with gold sheet . It is held in place by small nails that are concealed by flowers and balls. The entire front is covered by a “primer” of gold filigree and gold granulation . Enamel , pearls , cameos and cabochon- cut stones are placed on top .

The back of the cross is mostly smooth, only gemstones are embedded at each end of the four cross arms. There is also an inscription here:

  • Upper arm: SVSCEPTVM PLACIDE MANEAT HOC IN HONORE DEI QVOD OFFERVNT / FAMVLI XPI ADEFONSVS PRINCEPS ET SCEMENA REGINA
  • Right arm (left arm as seen by the beholder): QVISQVIS AVFERRE HAEC DONARIA NOSTRA PRESVMSERIT FVLMINE DIVINO INTEREAT IPSE
  • Left arm (right arm as seen by the beholder): HOC OPVS PERFECTVM CONCESSVM EST SANCTO SALVATORI OVETENSIS SEDIS
  • Lower arm: HOC SIGNO TVETVR PIVS HOC SIGNO VINCITVR INIMICVS / ET OPERATVM EST IN CASTELLO GAVZON ANNO REGNI NSI XVII DISCVRRENTE ERA DCCCCXVI

The translation is: Accepted graciously, remain this for the glory of God, which the servants of Christ offer Alfonso the prince and Jimena the queen. Whoever dares to take away this gift of ours shall perish by the divine lightning. This finished work was given to the Holy Savior [patron] of Oviedo Cathedral. Through this sign the pious have protection. With this sign the enemy is defeated. And it was made in the Castle of Gauzón in the 17 th of our reign, during the 916 era .

Art historical classification

Stylistically, there are similarities with the Carolingian goldsmith's art of the 9th century. It was also rated as a very outstanding piece at the time. Together with the Cross of Angels , which is 100 years older , the Cross of Victory is representative of a group of crosses that were otherwise not documented from this period and belonged to the furnishings of particularly important Asturian churches. No other specimens are known from the previous Visigothic period either.

Worth knowing

The cross of victory as a decoration on a t-shirt

The cross is an outstanding symbol of Asturias and - indirectly - all of Spain. It is reproduced on both the Asturian flag and its coat of arms .

literature

  • Dietrich Höllhuber and Werner Schäfke: The Spanish Way of St. James. History and art on the way to Santiago de Compostela . DuMont, [Cologne] 1999. ISBN 3-7701-4862-2
  • Pedro de Palol , Max Hirmer : Art of the early Middle Ages from the Visigoth Empire to the end of the Romanesque. Hirmer, Munich 1965, ISBN 3-7774-5730-2
  • Werner Schäfke: Northwest Spain. Landscape, history and art on the way to Santiago de Compostela . DuMont, Cologne 1987. ISBN 3-7701-1589-9

Remarks

  1. ↑ Also: Scemena .
  2. ↑ The cross and the act of donation are also dated by an inscription on the back of the cross.
  3. ↑ The location of the castle is disputed.
  4. ↑ 878 AD

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Höllhuber: The Spanish Way of St. James , p. 248.
  2. ^ Schäfke: Nordwest-Spanien , p. 217.
  3. ↑ Palol: Spain , p. 34.
  4. ↑ Palol: Spain , p. 34.
  5. ↑ Javier González Santos: La Catedral de Oviedo . Edilesa, León 1998. ISBN 84-8012-155-6 , p. 24.
  6. ↑ Höllhuber: The Spanish Way of St. James , p. 248.
  7. ↑ Fernando Rayón Valpuesta and José Luis Sampedro: Las joyas de las reinas de España: la desconocida historia de las alhajas reales . Editorial Planeta SA, 2nd edition 2004. ISBN 84-08-05119-9 .
  8. ↑ Luis Fernández: El robo que consternó a Asturias en 1977 . In: La Nueva España of November 27, 2013; accessed on June 20, 2019.
  9. ↑ Höllhuber: The Spanish Way of St. James , p. 248.
  10. ^ Schäfke: Nordwest-Spanien , p. 217.
  11. ^ Palol: Spain , p. 35.
  12. ^ Palol: Spain , p. 35.
  13. ↑ Palol: Spain , p. 34.
  14. ↑ Höllhuber: The Spanish Way of St. James , p. 248.