February 28, 2018

The Cross as symbol, Ethiopia

 

 

The iconic image of the cross, symbolizing faith, also used as a protective talisman by the Coptic Christians of Ethiopia, is reproduced in many materials and dimensions.

In biblical time, Ethiopia was linked to the holy land, through frequent pilgrimages to Jerusalem. One such caravan train bore the Queen of Sheba to a meeting with King Solomon, and through the conception of their child, Menelik the First, the Ethiopian royal house claimed descent from this line.

Later, Religious scholars encountered new doctrines and Ethiopia became one of the earliest nations to adopt Christianity.  Although they practice an orthodoxy akin to the Greeks, the Coptic Church deviates from other Christian doctrine on the following salient points:  the nature of the trinity, the day of the Sabbath and the veneration of the holy cross…

Perhaps for this reason, the cross as symbol is omnipresent in the country with a significant role in the cultural landscape of their lives:

 

The second verse of an official prayer is:

…….In honour of this cross,

We Christians prostrate ourselves with fear and awe,

For the son himself in person,

Hath sanctified it with his blood not with that of others,

When, on the cross

Divinity died in his humanity…

Furthermore, the concept of what can be constituted in the shape of a cross, has an inclusive meaning in Ethiopia. They vary in scale and proportion, from a few centimetres to architectural buildings such as the church at Lalibela, where the entire church, in the form of a cross, is hewn directly from rock. A common aphorism says

he who does not make his way to the holy city of Lalibela is like a man who feels no desire to see the face of our lord Jesus Christ…”

Crosses are constructed from: different metals, wood, stone, slate, leather and grass.

Originally they were made by casting metal with the lost wax process. This is a technique commonly used in West Africa and one can speculate that it may have been introduced into the region by nomadic people. Another process commonly used in both areas is using melted down coins for production (discussed below in the text).  But an easier technique, used later, was directly cutting the form from sheet metal, making the pieces separately, then bolting and riveting the bits together.

Metal crosses are categorized into: those with shafts, those that are hand held or pendant in form.

Gifted by Ethiopian monarchs and dignitaries to the church, large processional crosses with openwork designs and shafts are carried at the apex of sticks. They glitter, reflecting light as display items in the public domain, during festivals.

But kept within a sanctuary, some crosses are only visible to congregants.

Handheld crosses, made from iron, brass, silver and wood are 20-25cm in height. They  are specifically used by priests to touch and bless the faithful. Often wooden crosses had glass or metal inlay, some with incised figurative detail.

 

 

 

 

 

Within the home, small crosses worn on a strand around the neck are a symbol of faith and religious observance.  The history of these particular items can be traced, according to the Kebra Nagast or the (Ethiopian Royal chronicle) to Emperor Zara Jacob, in the 15th century, who decreed every christian in the empire wear one. They are often buried with the owner.  Crosses are frequently tattooed on womens’ foreheads and hands.

 

Some of the oldest crosses in existence today are made from iron.  “Silver” crosses in the past were made from Maria Therese thalers. These silver bullion coins, (named after Empress Maria Theresa) were minted in Austria from 1741 onwards and comprised .752 troy ounces of silver and became trading coin in Ethiopia.  They were melted and turned into Christian artefacts from the 1800s.  Today crosses are generally made from a variety of alloys including silver, chrome, zinc, tin, copper and brass.

Crosses are also painted on church walls or on large gesso covered wood altar panels.  Cruciform designs were incised on wooden chests.

In Shawa province, after the 1500s, scribes developed their own geometric décor, incorporating the cross as a decorative motif into illuminated manuscripts.

The cross is also an apotropaic object:  Small bilateral diptychs of late 17th and 18th century, made in wood were decorated with carved cruciform designs on the outside, acting as a protective emblem of the contents within and their owner. (These were small enough to be carried on one’s person).

Some traditional styles and forms of the cross have remained constant over centuries, others not. Many are based on the cross from Axum, comprising 3 points at the end of each leg.

One may ask who made these items?  According to: African Zion the sacred art of Ethiopia, 1993:249

“Historical inventories such as the inventory in the church of the Berber Maryam, list gold and silver chalices.  These, as well as crosses, sistra, censers and lamps were produced at monasteries by monks trained as metalworkers.

Over the centuries religious strife and plunder resulted in the looting of artefacts from Ethiopian churches. In 1553 the church of Dabra nagwadgwad was burned by troops of the Muslim leader Ahmad Gran, and its fabulous treasures looted.

The Victoria and Albert museum contains crowns, chalices and artefacts from Ethiopia and the battle of Magdala in 1867/8. The fortress of Emperor Theodore was routed by the British as a reprisal, after British civilians were kidnapped.

 

Bibliography: “African Zion the sacred art of Ethiopia”, catalogue by Marilyn Heldman and Stuart Munro-Hay, 1993. Yale University Press, New haven and London. In association with intrercultera, Fort Worth.  The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore The Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa.

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