Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index



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  • Title: Processional Cross
  • Creator:
  • Description: This cross was used for processional ceremonies in the Church of San Salvador de Fuentes in the province of Oviedo. The richness of the cross’s materials and the careful detail incorporated on the figures convey the luxuriousness of the small medieval churches located in the Christian Kingdoms of Northern Spain, and suggest that the patron of this cross was a member of the elite. This cross features a crowned and crucified Christ bordered by the mourning figures of the Virgin Mary and Saint John. Above Christ’s head is a rock crystal that covers a niche which once held a relic. At the very top of the cross, an angel is shown swinging a scepter, and at the bottom of the cross, Adam rises from the grave. Gilded silver bars fastened to the fore arms of the cross contain sumptuous gems and two antique intaglios; one features the image of an ancient Viceroy, and the other features a male nude with a spear and a fish. On the reverse side of the cross, the Lamb of God and the four symbols of the Gospel writers are depicted. Also included on this side is an inscription which bears the name Sanccia Guidisalvi. Sanccia is a woman’s name, and it is debated among scholars as to whether Sanccia was the patron or the actual artist of this work.
  • Source: Wikimedia Commons
  • Rights: Public Domain
  • Subject (See Also): Adam (Biblical Figure) Artists Crosses and Crucifixes Jesus Christ John the Baptist, Saint Mary, Virgin, Saint Patronage, Artistic
  • Geographic Area: Iberia
  • Century: 12
  • Date: circa. 1150-75
  • Related Work:
  • Current Location: New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 17.190.1406
  • Original Location: Church of San Salvador de Fuentes, Oviedo, Spain
  • Artistic Type (Category): Digital Images; Metalwork
  • Artistic Type (Material/Technique): Silver; Wood core; Gilt; Carved gems; Jewels
  • Donor: Laywoman?; [Therese Martin in her article cited above suggests that it is unclear as to whether Sancha Gonzales sponsored this cross or actually created it herself, pg. 12-16]
  • Height/Width/Length(cm): 59.1 cm/48.3 cm/
  • Inscription: [on reverse]: [IN HO]NORE : S[AN]C[T]I : SA/LVATORIS : SA/NCCIA : GVIDIS/ALVI : ME : FECIT (In honor of the Holy Savior (or, Saint Salvator), Sanccia [Sancha] Guidisalvi had me made (or, made me))
  • Related Resources: Therese Martin, Reassessing the Roles of Women As 'Makers' of Medieval Art and Architecture (2 Vol. Set), Leiden: BRILL, 2012, pg. 12, 16; Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Processional Cross." Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art. .; "Processional Cross [Spanish] (17.190.1406)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/17.190.1406 (October 2006)