It is one of the two handheld Hutsul crosses and one of the oldest items of this type in the Museum’s collection. The division into fields rimmed with smooth frames, which separate the upper and lower crossbeams, the middle part and the bottom part of the vertical beam is characteristic of this type of sacral objects. The free spaces of the slightly recessed background are decorated with a zigzag line ornament. The arrangement of depictions in the composition on both sides of the cross is analogous. The obverse shows the body of Christ stretched out on the cross and the torsos of the Mother of God and Saint John placed at the ends of the middle crossbeam. On the reverse, in the middle Maria stands holding the Child, with her full figure depicted, accompanied by two unidentified saints. On both sides, on the upper and lower crossbeams, there are Cyrillic inscriptions rimmed with a zigzag frame indicating Christ as King of Glory and Victor, and Mary as the Mother of God. Determining the age of the cross was facilitated by a seamless connection of the handle with the shaft, typical of artefacts from the 17th and 18th centuries. The discussed exhibit has retained brass edges and frames made of brass sheet, often used in Hutsul handicraft, which were intended to protect them against accelerated wear and tear.
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