Cross form

Armenian cross and khachkars

Also: khachkar (cross-stone) · blossoming cross

Drawing under review. Redrawn on 21 October 2026 as a flowering cross after medieval khachkar carving: trefoil (palmette) ends, leaf branches growing from the foot, a seed form at the crossing and a rosette over a stepped base. It is an adaptation, not a copy of one stone, and awaits specialist review.

Form

A cross whose arms end in trefoils or flowering forms. On khachkars (stone steles up to about 1.5 m high) it is carved in the centre, resting on a sun or wheel of eternity, surrounded by plant and geometric ornament.

When it is documented

The craft continues today; it was inscribed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage in 2010.

Context

Khachkars serve as places of worship and as memorials, in Armenia and the diaspora.

Links in the Atlas

Historically associated with Armenian Apostolic Church (Tradition)
A typical sign of Armenian Christianity; not an official emblem of the Church.

Sources and how they were checked

Description of khachkars; inscription in 2010.
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, “Armenian cross-stones art. Symbolism and craftsmanship of Khachkars” · checked 2026-10-21
“Blooming cross” with trefoil ends.
Wikipedia, “Christian cross variants” — Armenian cross · checked 2026-10-21 (tertiary reference)
Khachkar morphology (palmette terminals, sprouting branches, seed, rosette, stepped base; 9th–13th-century tradition) as the model for the revised Atlas drawing.
Production batch 2 manifest, symbol-cross-armenian-red · batch-2

Not yet known or sourced

The date range of medieval khachkars is not recorded here.
The revised drawing awaits specialist review.