Ethiopian Processional Cross
Ethiopian processional crosses are tall brass, silver, or bronze crosses carried on staffs before the clergy during the liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Each cross is unique, built from a dense tracery of openwork that varies with the workshop and the region; the arms are set in a frame that may be square, round, or diamond-shaped, and the patterns are filled with small figurative and geometric motifs. The cross is both instrument and image: it is held over the congregation as a blessing, kissed by the faithful, and its openwork is understood to evoke the Tree of Life and the victory