Processional Cross

Also known as: Crucifixion (double-faced processional cross)

About the Artwork

This cross was originally mounted on a tall pole and carried in religious processions. Therefore, the figures on each side are almost identical. In the center is Christ crucified. Looking on from the elaborate terminals at left and right are the Virgin and Saint John. The bottom terminal shows a different saint on each side: Saint Francis on one and Saint Clare on the other. At the top of each side is an angel. Although one angel looks up and the other down, both express intense grief in their faces and gestures. The Master of Santa Chiara is the name given to this unknown artist who painted this and several other works in Assisi. In that city, Saint Francis founded an order of friars while Saint Clare established a counterpart for women called the Poor Clares. The presence of both saints on this cross suggests that it was made for one of Assisi's Franciscian institutions.

Provenance

Charles A. Loeser, Florence, Italy ?-1931: Achille de Clemente, Florence (New York sale Jan 15, 1931) 1931-1941: William Randolph Hearst (New York, NY Sale 1941) 1941-1943: (Mr. Adolph Loewi, Los Angeles, CA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1943-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Oh

Exhibition history

The Treasury of Saint Francis of Assisi. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (March 15-June 27, 1999). The Caporali Missal: A Masterpiece of Renaissance Illumination. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 17-June 2, 2013).

Quick Overview

Artist: Master of Santa Chiara (Italian)
Date: c. 1320
Medium: oil on canvas on wood
Dimensions: Unframed: 61.3 x 44.2 x 2.6 cm (24 1/8 x 17 3/8 x 1 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Medieval Art
Credit line: Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession no.: 1943.280

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.