Golden cross "Crucifixion. Archangel Michael. Mother of God "The Sign" with blackening
Metal: red gold 585"
Average weight: 12.41 g
Height (with eyelet): 3.2 cm
Cross width: 2.1 cm
Ear dimensions: 0.7 x 0.4 cm
The image of the Lord Jesus Christ is the main one on every cross. It is to Christ, who came to earth for our salvation, that all prayers are offered. The Most Holy Theotokos, angels and saints are the Lord’s helpers in the matter of salvation and intercessors for people before God. On the front side there is an icon of the Crucifixion of Christ - an image of the sacrifice made by the Lord for the sins of people. The Church calls the cross “the great weapon of Christ,” because, having suffered and died, the Lord defeated death and deprived the devil of his power over the world. The ancient view of the Crucifixion shows the image of the Son of God ascended to the Cross, with his arms outstretched in an embrace with which He seems to be striving to embrace the world. While preserving the image of the suffering of Christ, the Orthodox Crucifixion at the same time surprisingly accurately conveys the dogmatic depth of its meaning. The body of the Lord does not hang, but solemnly rests on the Cross. Christ, crucified and dead, is miraculously alive in death itself. And, looking at the Orthodox Crucifixion, we always know that Christ not only died for the sins of people, but He also rose again!
The Crucified Savior is stood on both sides by the Most Holy Theotokos and the Apostle John. During the entire time of suffering they remained at the Cross of the Lord. Mourning angels fly to the right and left, and at the top is the Prepared Throne, which in Greek is called “Etimasia”. The Lord prepared this throne for Himself through His suffering. He will sit on it after the resurrection of the dead at the end of time for the Last Judgment.
On the reverse side of the cross is Archangel Michael, the most powerful of the angels. It was he who overthrew the devil and stood at the head of the angels to fight the demonic forces. His name means “Who is God?”, as he is the most powerful and formidable enemy of evil. Old Russian princes and warriors sought to gain the patronage of the Heavenly Voivode and often decorated their helmets with his winged figure. In Rus' they also believed that Archangel Michael, as an implacable enemy of the devil, protects the souls of the dead from demonic attacks, escorting them to Heaven. Therefore, cemetery churches were often dedicated to him.
At the top, above the image of the archangel, is an icon of the Most Holy Theotokos raising her hands in prayer. In the formation of such iconography, the Old Testament story telling about the battle of the Israelites with the armies of Amalek was of great importance: “And when Moses lifted up his hands,Israel prevailed, and when he gave up, Amalek prevailed. And his hands were raised until the sun went down. And Joshua overthrew Amalek... And Moses built an altar to the Lord and called the name Jehovah Nissi (the Lord is my banner).” Moses prayed for the Jewish people entrusted to him by God, leading them through the desert to the Promised Land, and the Most Holy Theotokos eternally stands before God and prays for all creation, leading them from the spiritual desert to the Kingdom of God. And while She prays, while Her hands are raised, the peoples of the earth will win in the invisible battle against the forces of hell.
The most famous icon for miracles with such iconography is “The Sign”. During the battle of the Novgorodians with the Suzdalians in 1169, this icon shed tears from the eyes of the Mother of God. Since then, the Most Holy Theotokos, grieving “over the hateful strife of this world,” has become in this image a strong defender of the righteous in their opposition to evil.
* Attention. Product description can be obtained by machine translation.
