Wood sculpture - Crucifix

Wood sculpture - Crucifix, single piece

Central Europe, 19th century.

Skillfully carved and painted from wood, the crucifix is ​​approximately 450mm x 230mm in size. Corpus approx. 210mm x 200mm.

Symbol meaning

A crucifix (lat. crucifixum) is a sculpture or image depicting the crucified Christ. The crucifix shows the body of Christ (corpus), which distinguishes it from the cross. Three-dimensional sculptural crucifixes are a Western tradition, while two-dimensional pictorial crucifixes are an Eastern tradition. The earliest crucifixes were small and kept on the altar. Crucifixes often have the letters INRI above Jesus' head. This is an abbreviation of the Latin text "Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum" (Finnish: Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews), which according to the Bible, Pontius Pilate wrote on the board above Jesus' head (see the Bible John 19:19).

The cross is an ancient symbol whose meaning has varied in different cultures and religions. It has been, among other things, a metaphor for the sun, the universe and divinity. In religious use, the shape of the cross made of two pieces of wood dates back to ancient Chaldea, where it was used as a metaphor for the god Tammuz. A similar symbol was also used in Egypt, for example. In Christianity, the cross, i.e. the crucifix, from which the body of the crucified Jesus hangs, depicts Christ's suffering and death. A cross with three transverse beams is also called a Slavic cross. In it, the uppermost crossbar depicts the slab that was on Jesus' cross. On the middle crossbar, Jesus' hands were nailed to the crossbar, and the lowest crossbar depicts the crossbar that supported the legs and the whole body. However, the lowest crossbar is also believed to refer to the two robbers and their fate, perdition (downward) and paradise (upward). A three-beamed cross, where the lowest beam is straight and not slanted like the Orthodox ones, shows that the church belongs to the Greek Catholic Church, i.e. a church under the Roman Catholic Church that follows the Byzantine rite, the so-called to the Uniate Church. In the Celtic cross, a circle is depicted at the junction of the upright and crossbar. It has been considered to symbolize the universe pierced by the cross: Christ is the king of all. St. Peter's cross is a cross with the crossbar down. According to the apocryphal Gospel of Peter, St. Peter died crucified with his head down. This was his own will, because he thought he was not worthy enough to die in the same way as Jesus Christ. An upside down cross also symbolizes anti-Christianity and Satanism. The cross in question is also called a sword cross, because it resembles a sword raised in battle, whereas the traditional Christian cross is a sword thrust into the ground.

Note! A crucifix is ​​a single piece that is hundreds of years old and has been in frequent use. The sculpture has small surface defects, dents and wear. Cross painted black possibly later.