Antique French Arma Christi - Black Forest Alter Cross

Antique French Arma Christi - Black Forest Alter Cross  - Porcelain or Bisque Corpus on Carved Wooden Cross - RC158

A large Arma Christi Black Forest Alter Cross, carved by hand in the 1800's. Carved from two separate pieces of dark wood and adorned with a Bisque depiction of Christ or Corpus, this alter cross is part of a collection that we were very fortunate to be invited to purchase. Items purchased came from the estate of a lifelong collection - that of a well renowned French Religious Antiquities Expert. All items from this estate date from the 16th, 17th and 18th century; please see other listings.

Larger than usual this alter cross stands at 19 inches high in the carved base representing the mount where the Cross was placed, Golgotha. The Cross is inserted into the base, and integrated within the carvings around the cross are some of the Instruments of the Passion: The Ladder, The Holy Lance, the Holy Sponge, - and draped over the cross bar of the crucifix is the Veil of Veronica. It has is almost in a very early Art Nouveau style with bark carved into the timber of the cross that have been adorned with the addition of carved leaves. This is an Arma Christi and not a crucifix; this type of cross is not been designed to hold a figure of Christ so this is an unusual piece.

A beautifully detailed carving that has been carefully preserved for around two hundred years; this is a fine representation of the Arma Christi and the size makes it particularly interesting. In extremely good condition for the age, it has been well polished especially on the base were the wood shows great patina, This Arma Christi is in Very Good Antique Condition with only a sign of a small restoration of a replacement nail or two. Any signs of worm are old and we have treated it anyway in our workshop to make sure it is its best possible condition.

Dimensions: Height including base: 19.5" x width 6.5" x depth 4" (50 x 17 x 10 cm). Without packaging the cross and base together weigh 0.5 kg.

Your purchase will be very carefully packaged and despatched via the Irish An Post postal service. 
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