Antique Byzantine Catholic Russian Orthodox large handmade cast Cross patina

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Antique Byzantine Catholic Russian Orthodox large handmade cast Cross patina:
$59.00

Ancient, authentic Eastern Orthodox (Russian Empire or Poland or Ukraine), or Eastern/Greek Catholic pectoral, body (Baptism) cross pendant. Handmade, bears marks from a coppersmith\'s file. Cast from a brass-like copper alloy. Covered with original, beautiful green patina from the past centuries. The cross is slightly deformed (bent), and mildly worn out, likely due to devotional wearing by several generations of Christians. Few tiny fragments appear to be chipped off on the crossbars\' sides. Could have been worn as a pectoral \"body\" cross by a layman, a deacon or a priest. Exact age unknown, could have been an artifact from c. late-1700s to mid1800s.
The obverse of the cross pendant bears aByzantine-like Subpedaneum cross. The Byzantine three-bar cross is used in the Eastern Orthodox and some Eastern Catholic churches. Such a cross has three horizontal crossbeams: the top one represents the \"INRI\" nameplate, and the bottom one, a footrest.
The upper end of the vertical crossbarusually incorporates an abreviated inscription meaning\"King of Glory\" used in the Eastern Orthodox pectoral crosses as a nameplate.
The left side end of the central horizontal crossbar bears an abbreviated inscription in Church Slavonic meaning \"Son of God\".The right side end of the crossbar bears an abbreviated inscription in Church Slavonic meaning \"Jesus Christ, the Victor\".
A small, worn out image of the skull, or Adam\'s head, below the image of the Subpedaneum cross refers to Golgotha (Calvary), the elevated site where Jesus was crucified, which the Bible says means \"the place of the skull\" in Hebrew. An ancient tradition of Catholic and Orthodox Churches held that it was also the burial place of Adam thus symbolizing the ultimate victory of Christ over sin and death.
Please examine all photographs carefully and do your own research if necessary. Please note that photographs are an important part of the item\'s description. The decorative stone and measuring meter are not for sale, and are photographed with the item in order to provide a size reference or an artistic background.Please ask all questions before making a purchase.There are no guarantees with the listing because most items are original artifacts that are quite old. All items are sold \"as is\" with no returns because of a change of mind offered. Shipping and handling is free for the continental US. International buyers, please ask me for a shipping quote prior to buying.Please note that customs regulations differ from country to country, and it is a buyer\'s responsibility to ensure that any customs fees or other duties collected by the buyer\'s country are paid and satisfied in full.