Explore
Crosses
Historical forms of the cross, including many that belong to no single church. Each page gives the documented form and period, the links a source supports, and what is still unknown.
26 crosses
- Latin crossAn upright longer than the crossbar, so the top of the upright rises above it.Catholic Church
- Greek crossFour arms of equal length.Eastern Orthodox Church · Greek Orthodox Church
- Tau crossA T shape, with no part of the upright above the crossbar, named after the Greek letter tau.Saint Francis of Assisi · Saint Anthony the Great
- Chi-RhoThe Greek letters chi (Χ) and rho (Ρ), the first two letters of Christos, laid over each other.No matching tradition
- Russian Orthodox crossThree bars: a short top bar (the inscription over Christ’s head), the main crossbar, and a slanted footrest near the foot.Russian Orthodox Church
- Patriarchal crossTwo crossbars, the upper one shorter (the inscription plaque).No matching tradition
- Jerusalem crossA large cross potent (each arm ending in a crossbar) with a small Greek cross in each of the four quarters.Order of the Holy Sepulchre
- Maltese crossFour V-shaped arms meeting at the centre, giving eight points.Knights Hospitaller
- Cross pattéeArms that narrow at the centre and splay out towards the ends.Knights Templar · Teutonic Order
- Ringed (Celtic) high crossA cross whose arms and head are joined by a ring around the crossing; on the great stone high crosses, often carved with ornament and, later, biblical scenes.No matching tradition
- Saint Andrew’s cross (saltire)An X-shaped cross.No matching tradition
- Cross of Saint Peter (inverted cross)A Latin cross upside down, with the crossbar near the foot.Saint Peter
- Coptic crossesSeveral forms, not one.Coptic Orthodox Church
- Ethiopian crossesAlmost always elaborate latticework.Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
- Armenian cross and khachkarsA cross whose arms end in trefoils or flowering forms.Armenian Apostolic Church
- East Syriac crossAn equal-armed cross.Assyrian Church of the East
- Brigid’s crossWoven from rushes or straw, in several forms.Saint Brigid of Kildare
- Huguenot crossAn equal-armed cross based on the Maltese and Languedoc crosses, with a pendant dove (the Holy Spirit).Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
- Anchor crossA cross shaped like an anchor.No matching tradition
- Cross of the Order of ChristA red Latin cross pattée, edged in gold and charged with an inner white Latin cross.Order of Christ
- Cross of Saint James (Santiago)A red sword-cross, with a long pointed blade, a shaped hilt and curling side terminals.Order of Santiago
- Cross of CalatravaA red equal-armed cross with broad curling fleurs-de-lis at the ends.Order of Calatrava
- Cross of AlcántaraA green equal-armed cross with the same curling fleury form as Calatrava.Order of Alcántara
- Cross of AvisA green cross fleury, shown in the cited equal-armed reference form with the gold edge specified for the modern Portuguese insignia.Order of Avis
- Cross of MontesaA black cross fleury with broad curling fleurs-de-lis, charged at the centre with a smaller plain red Greek cross.Order of Montesa
- Cross of Saint LazarusA green cross; the Atlas drawing follows the medieval form named by production batch 1.Order of Saint Lazarus
No drawing yet: a documented drawing is awaited from the asset round rather than improvised. Drawings marked for review on their page are kept until a reviewed replacement exists.