Ethiopian Iron Coptic Cross

Kiss the cross. It is a blessing, and the priest will offer it to you.

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, priests carry hand crosses and offer them to the faithful to be kissed. This iron one, from the 19th century, has an openwork head built around an equal-armed cross with arrow-shaped terminals, framed by scrolling curls and small punched dots.

A slender shaft leads down to a flat square plate and a small knob. The iron is a warm reddish-brown, smoothed by handling. Eight inches tall, upright on a black base.

Handled by many. Marked by all of them.