What: A processional cross cast in bronze, taken by the British Museum’s expert on the expedition, Richard Rivington Holmes
Where: The British Museum, Great Russell St, Bloomsbury, London WC1B 3DG
Provenance: Maqdala referenced at length in the museum’s acquisition notes.
The catalogue entry reads:
“Processional cross cast in bronze and engraved. The body of the cross is formed from an outlined patée cross filled with interlaced cruciform motifs, with four open work crosses at the intersection of each arm. The arms of the cross are further extended and embellished with fluid serpentine designs and circular cruciform motifs. The squared, hollow shaft of the cross is tapered and engraved front and back with Ge’ez inscriptions. Two lower arms extend out from the shaft in the form of interlaced parallel bands which curve out and attach to the base of the cross. Either side of the shaft is an abstract representation of a snake and an extended band which joins the arms of the cross. The surface of the cross is decorated with engraved linear and punched designs.”
Inscription Translation
This cross (is dedicated to the church of) Takla Haymanot.
Given by Asada Maryam
Exhibited:
1978, London, British Museum, Christian Orient
1995/6 Oct-Jan, Royal Academy of Arts, Africa: The Art of a Continent
1996 Mar-May, Berlin, Martin Gropius Bau, Africa: The Art of a Continent
1996 May-Sep, New York, Guggenheim Museum, Africa: The Art of a Continent
“Sacred: Discover what we share” British Library, 23rd Apr 2007 to 27th Sep 2007
Acquisition notes: “Richard Rivington Holmes, an assistant in the manuscripts department of The British Museum, had accompanied the expedition as an archaeologist. He acquired a number of objects for the British Museum, including around 300 manuscripts which are now housed in the British Library. In 1868 the Secretary of State for India, Sir Stafford Henry Northcote, 1st Earl of Iddesleigh, donated to The British Museum two further collections of material from Maqdala.”
Details
Museum number: Af1868,1001.16
Date: 16thC
Length: 47 cm
Width: 35 cm
Depth: 3 cm
Previous owner/ex-collection: Sir Richard Rivington Holmes
Acquisition date: 1868