A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet at right angles.
The cross is one of the most ancient human symbols, and has been used by many religions, most notably Christianity. It may be seen as a division of the world into four elements (Chevalier, 1997) or cardinal points, or alternately as the union of the concepts of divinity, the vertical line, and the world, the horizontal line (Koch, 1955).
The word cross comes ultimately from Latin crux, a Roman torture device used for crucifixion, via Old Irish cros. The word was introduced to English in the 10th century as the term for the instrument of the torturous execution of Jesus as described in the New Testament, gradually replacing the earlier word rood.
It is not known when the first cross image was made; after circles, crosses are one of the first symbols drawn by children of all cultures. Some of the earliest images of crosses were found in the Central Asian steppes, and some were found in Altay. The cross in the old Altaic religion called Tengriism symbolizes the god Tengri; it wasn't an elongated "dagger" cross, instead resembling a plus sign (+).
The first Christian books from Armenia and Syria contained evidence that the cross originated with horsemen from the east, possibly referring to the first Turkic people. In old Armenian temples, some stylistic Turkic influences are found in cross symbols. Named animal, the symbol was found in the plans of temples, with the pillars from above looking like an additional cross.
There are many cross-shaped incisions in European cult caves, dating back to the earliest stages of human cultural development in the stone age. Like other symbols from this period, their use continued in the Celtic and Germanic cultures in Europe. For example, Celtic coins minted many centuries before the Christian era may have an entire side showing this type of cross, sometimes with the cardinal points marked by concave depressions in the same style as in stone age carvings. Other coins may be showing the cross held by a rider on a horse and springing a fern leaf, sometimes identified as a Tree of Life symbol.
As of April 10, 2013, pictures of a possible contender for the first use of the cross symbol has been found at the Tell Khaiber excavation site in Ur, Iraq. The shape of one of the buildings, believed to be about 4,000 years old, is in the shape of a cross of the type used in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. A picture of the building's floor can be seen here: This would predate the ancient Israelites Tabernacle in the wilderness and the first two temples by about 800 years.
Written crosses are used for many different purposes, particularly in mathematics.
- The addition (or plus) sign (+) and the multiplication (or times) sign (×) are cross shapes.
- A cross is often used as a check mark because it can be clearer, easier to create with an ordinary pen or pencil, and less obscuring of any text or image that is already present than a large dot. It also allows marking a position more accurately than a large dot.
- The Chinese character for ten is 十 (see Chinese numerals).
- The dagger or obelus (†) is a cross
- The Georgian letters ქ and ჯ are crosses.
- In the Latin alphabet, the letter X and the minuscule form of t are crosses.
- The Roman numeral for ten is X.
- A large cross through a text often means that it is wrong or should be considered deleted. A cross is also used stand-alone (✗) to denote rejection.
As emblems and symbols
|This section regarding the symbolism of a flag, coat of arms, seal, or other emblem needs additional citations for verification. (February 2012)|
Also known as the Egyptian Cross, the Key of the Nile, the Looped Tau Cross, and the Ansate Cross. It was an Ancient Egyptian symbol of life and fertility, pre-dating the modern cross. Sometimes given a Latin name if it appears in specifically Christian contexts, such as the crux ansata ("handled cross").
Also known as the blooming cross.
|Basque cross||The lauburu.|
|Bolnisi Cross of Georgia||The four Bolnisi crosses are used in the Georgian Flag.|
|Budded Cross||Also known as the Apostles' Cross, the Treflée, Botonée or Cathedral Cross. The three circles or discs at the ends of each arm in a Christian context represents the Trinity, but this shape was probably also copied from earlier Celtic Druidry, where the circles or rings represent the three dominions of earth, sky and sea.|
|Christian cross||Also known as the Latin cross or crux ordinaria. It is the most common symbol of Christianity, intended to represent the death of Jesus when he was crucified on the True Cross and his resurrection in the New Testament.|
|Original Coptic Cross||
The original Coptic cross used by early Gnostic Christians in Egypt.
A small circle from which emanate four arms of equal length, with angled T shapes in the corners, cross-pieces outward, representing the nails used in Jesus' crucifixion. This cross receives its name from Coptic Christianity, which centered on Alexandria, Egypt.
|New Coptic Cross||
This new Coptic Cross is the cross currently used by the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Coptic Catholic Church of Alexandria. It evolved from the older Coptic Crosses depicted above. A gallery of Coptic Crosses can be found here.
|Sun cross, Bolgar cross||
Also known as the Bolgar cross, Sunwheel, solar cross or Woden's cross. Used in Europe since the Neolithic era and by ancient and contemporary Native American culture to represent respectively Neopagan beliefs and the great Medicine Wheel of life. Was used by the Bulgarian Tzars (emperors) as a symbol of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
Used in the Anglican Churches. It has four arms of equal length, each widening at the outer end in a hammer shape so that their rims nearly form a circle. Each arm bears a triangular panel incised with a triquetra symbolizing the Trinity. In the center of the cross is a small square. The Anglo-Saxon original, as a brooch, dates from c. 850 AD and was excavated in 1867 in Canterbury, England. A stone replica can be found in Canterbury Cathedral and in many other Anglican cathedrals around the world.
A representation of Jesus' body affixed to a cross. It is primarily used in the Catholic Church, Anglican, Lutheran, and Eastern Orthodox churches, and it emphasizes Christ's sacrifice— his death by crucifixion.
Used especially by Eastern Orthodoxy and Early Christianity Also known as the crux immissa quadrata. Has all arms of equal length and not much longer than the width. Often the arms curve wider as they go out.
The earliest emblem of the Red Cross is a red Greek cross on a white background; it is often claimed to have been derived as the inverse of the Flag of Switzerland, which has a white Greek cross on a red background.
|Serbian cross (Tetragrammatic cross)||
The motif of a cross between objects is perhaps derived from Constantine's labarum and has figured on Byzantine coins, since the 6th century. Later, the four symbols of the cross have been interpreted as flints or firestones, but also as the initials (letters β) of the imperial motto of the Palaiologos dynasty: King of Kings, Ruling Over Kings (Greek: βασιλεύς βασιλέων, βασιλεύων βασιλευόντων—Basileus Basileōn, Basileuōn Basileuontōn). The cross has been used by Serbian states and the Serbian Orthodox Church since the Middle Ages after Dušan the Mighty was crowned Emperor (Tsar) of the Serbs and Greeks (16 April 1345). Today it is the national, religious and ethnic symbol of Serbs and Serbia.
Adopted as an emblem by the fire service, this cross is named for Saint Florian, the patron saint of Austria and firefighters. Although similar to the Maltese Cross and Cross pattée, it differs in having arms rounded outwards at the ends. Two different versions are included here; the one above is commonly found on fire service badges, patches, and emblems; the one below is typical of the Saint Florian medallion or medal.
Also known as the Byzantine, Russian (Orthodox) Cross or the Suppedaneum cross. Used in the Eastern Orthodox Church. The top line is said to represent the headboard, and the bottom, slanted line represents the footrest, wrenched loose by Jesus' writhing in intense agony. It is raised to the left side, because that was the side of the righteous criminal who said to Jesus: "remember me when you come into your kingdom". This symbolises the victory of good over evil. The letters IC XC found at the end of the main arm of most Eastern Orthodox Crosses are a Christogram, representing the name of Jesus Christ (Greek: Ἰησοῦς Χριστός). See also the Cross of Salem.
This cross is found throughout Ireland. It is told that Brigid, daughter of a pagan king, made the cross from reeds to be used as an instrument of conversion. However, Brigid's name is derived from Brigit (also spelled Brigid, Brìghde, Brìde, and Bríde), a Celtic Goddess of fire, poetry, and smithcraft, and today the cross is used to protect houses from fire. This is an example of the integration of religious traditions.
Constantine I's emblem, the Chi-Rho (from the two Greek letters that make it up) is also known as a Christogram. Several variants exist. When shown on the banner of a standards, the standard is known as a labarum
Used in heraldry. It is similar to a patriarchal cross, but usually has one bar near the middle and one near the top, rather than having both near the top. Is part of the heraldic arms of Lorraine in eastern France. It was originally held to be a symbol of Joan of Arc, renowned for her perseverance against foreign invaders of France, and later was used as a symbol of the French Resistance.
Analogous to the two-barred patriarchal/archiepiscopal cross used in heraldry to indicate a patriarch or archbishop. The three cross-bars indicate a rank above those offices and represents the Pope's role as Supreme Pontiff.
Similar to a traditional Christian cross, but with an additional, smaller crossbar above the main one meant to represent all the Orthodox Christian Archbishops and Patriarchs. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, this cross is sometimes seen with an additional, slanted bar near the foot of the cross (see Orthodox cross). This cross is similar to the Lorraine Cross, Caravaca Cross, and Salem Cross. It is used on the coats of arms of Slovakia, Hungary and Lithuania, and by the Lithuanian Air Force.
|Celtic Cross||Popular in Great Britain and Ireland in Roman Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian denominations. Also called "Saint Luke's Cross" by School of Theology (Episcopal) graduates that receive a cross upon graduation.|
|Cross of Sacrifice||
A Latin cross with a superimposed sword, blade down. It is a symbol used by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission at the site of many war memorials.
|Cross of Salem||
Also known as a pontifical cross because it is carried before the Pope, it is similar to a patriarchal cross, but with an additional crossbar below the main crossbar, equal in length to the upper crossbar. It is also similar to the Eastern Cross.
|Saint Nino's Cross|
|Saint Thomas Cross||
Also known as a "Mar Thoma Cross" and traditionally ascribed to Saint Thomas, the Apostole of India, it is used as a symbol of the Syro Malabar Catholic Church and venerated by all Saint Thomas Christians denominations.
|Saint George's Cross (in Scandinavia)||
The definition of a St George's cross is, in Scandinavia, extended to also include a centred cross, normally red but not necessarily, with triangular arms that do not fill the square. The example beside is the cross of the Swedish Order of Freemasons.
|Saint Peter's Cross|
|Order of Christ Cross||
Cross originally used by the Portuguese Order of Christ. Since then it has become a symbol of Portugal, used on the sails of the carracks during the Discoveries Era, and currently by the Madeira Autonomous Region of Portugal and the Portuguese Air Force.
|Macedonian Cross||Found on many churches in Macedonia, it is displayed on the coat of arms of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, and is the main element of the "Holy Macedonian Cross Table Medal" of the Macedonian Orthodox Church.|
|Celtic cross (simplified)||
A cross in a circle (overlapping). This form has been adopted by various nationalist and pro-White movements., and is banned in Germany if used within a pro-White context (cf. Strafgesetzbuch section 86a).
Archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates from the Neolithic period. It occurs mainly in the modern day culture of India, sometimes as a geometrical motif and sometimes as a religious symbol. It remains widely used in Eastern and Dharmic religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. Though once commonly used all over much of the world without stigma, because of its right-facing variant's iconic usage in National Socialist Germany, the symbol has become stigmatized in the Western world.
|These crosses are used primarily or exclusively in heraldry and do not necessarily have any special meanings commonly associated with them. Not all the crosses of heraldry and the crosses with commonly known contexts are listed below.|
|The cross as heraldic "ordinary"||
The basic heraldic cross (the default if there are no additional specifying words) has arms of roughly equal length, adapted to fit the particular shape of the shield, extending to the edges of the shield (or subdivision thereof)—as in the coat of the City of London.
A cross which does not extend to the edges of the shield is couped or humetty, in heraldic terminology, as in the coat, flag and badge of Geiger, Canada; it is shown with all its limbs of equal length and is also sometimes called a Greek cross.
Found in the coat of Umziginsi School, South Africa (see South Africa's Bureau of Heraldry); and in the coat of Upper Macungie Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania (see The Heraldic Register of America); also the coat of Tillie in Cornwall (cited in Parker's Glossary, s.v. Cross barby). The symbol—also called an arrow cross-- in green was the rallying symbol of the former Hungarian Nazi-style party.
A cross with the ends of the arms bottony (or botonny), i.e. shaped like a trefoil—and so it is sometimes called a cross trefly. It occurs counterchanged on the flag of Maryland; a saltire botonny can be seen in the coat and flag of the Village of New Maryland, New Brunswick; and a Latin cross trefly can be seen in the coat of Isidore Popowych.
In early armory it is not always distinguished from a cross crosslet.
A cross recercely seems to be a cross moline parted or voided throughout—though it may be a cross moline very curly (Brooke-Little An heraldic alphabet, p 77).
|Cross fleury or flory|
One form of the heraldic cross fourchee (fourchée, fourchy) or cross fourche (meaning "forked"). An example is the South African Postal Association (South Africa's Bureau of Heraldry)
Upright cross with truncated angled arms; essentially a variant of the swastika; uncommon, but can be found in the crest of Gordon of Hallhead (Scots Public Register volume 31, page20). Also known as a gammadion cross, consisting of four capital Greek letters Γ (gamma).
The symbol of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, which existed for almost two hundred years after the First Crusade; in the rendering at left, the large cross is shown slightly "potent" (i.e., with T-shaped ends), but that is not always the case. The four smaller crosses are said to symbolize either the four books of the Gospel or the four directions in which the Word of Christ spread from Jerusalem. Alternatively, all five crosses can symbolize the five wounds of Christ during the Passion. This symbol is used in the flag of Georgia. Also found in the coat of arms of the Papal Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, Vatican City (matriculated in Scotland as "Argent; a Jerusalem cross cantoned between four crosses couped, gules"—Scots Public Register, volume 75, page 112)—to be seen at various EOHSJ websites; also in the Canadian coat of Robert Gerald Guest (Canadian Public Register Volume III, page 85).
With arms which narrow towards the center, and are indented at the ends, also known as the eight-pointed cross (with no curved lines). Perhaps best known as a badge of the Order of Malta; whether connected with the Order or not, it is a common heraldic device—found in the coat of the London Borough of Hackney and the Canadian coat of Eric Lawrence Barry; as a "cross of eight points" to be found in the crest of Robert G. Loftus, Canada.
In a cross moline, the ends of the arms are bifurcated, split and curved back, as found in the English coat of Kirkby Urban District Council and the Canadian coat of Charles Macdonald Lloyd Buchanan; surprisingly often to be found pierced, as shown in the online version of Guillim, section II chapter VII.
It is also called a cross ancré or anchory as in the arms of Rory Henry Grattan Fisher and of the Town of Dalmeny, Saskatchewan. As a mark of cadency in English and Canadian heraldry, it marks an eighth son.
A cross patonce is more or less intermediate between a cross pattée and a cross flory (or fleury). The ends of its limbs are trifurcated into leaf shapes, and seems to come in two sorts: one where the limbs are the same width all along as in the coat of Godfrey McCance Gransden; and the other where the limbs gently widen from the centre (but do not curve) as in the coat of John Chiu (both of Canada). A mediaeval example is shown on the seal of William de Fortibus(d.1260)
A cross pattee (pattée, patty), or formée (formy) has arms narrowing towards the centre, but with flat ends. It can be shown with curved inside edges as in the coats of Fr. Marc Edward Smith (Canada) and Lydney Town Council, England or the Iron Cross; but sometimes encountered with straight edges (triangular arms). The symbol was also used as the military aircraft roundel design for the former German Empire and the former Kingdom of Bulgaria.
A cross pommee (pommée, pommy) has a round knob at the end of each arm, as in the coat of Penwith District Council, England.
This cross has a crossbar at the end of each of its arms. "Potent" is an old word for a crutch, and is used in heraldic terminology to describe a T shape. It is used by many, mostly Roman Catholic, Scouting and Guiding organisations in their logos and insignia. Found in the coat of Stevan Bradley Graeme Ralph and the badge of Fr. Mark Lowell Sargent (both Canada), it was also the symbol of Austrofascism.
A cross with a square at the intersection point (sometimes with a smaller relative size than shown in the illustration); found in the coats of Francesco Maestri (Canada) and Warwick District Council, England.
|Cross triple parted and fretted||
A cross "parted and fretted" is divided and interlaced; if no number is specified, it has two strips in each direction. Found (triple parted) in the coat, flag and badge of the Greater Vancouver (British Columbia) Transportation Authority Police Service; and (double) in the coat of Croydon County Borough Council, England.
A "cross voided throughout" has the central parts of the limbs cut with the colouring behind it showing through—as in the coat of the City of Lacombe, Alberta. The centre may be filled with another tincture as in the coat of the Town of Abbotsford, British Columbia.
A cross pierced has a circular void at the intersection. c.f. cross pierced quarterly.
|Cross pierced quarterly||
A cross pierced quarterly has a square void at the intersection. c.f. cross pierced (no qualification), which shows a circular void.
|Cross fitchy||A cross fitchy has the lower limb pointed, as if to be driven into the ground.|
A cross with the ends of each arm crossed. A prominent early example is in the arms of the Beauchamp earls of Warwick. In early armory it is not always distinguished from a cross bottony. A variant is the cross crosslet double crossed, with two bars crossing each arm, as in the arms of Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke(d.1502) sculpted on his tomb at Callington Church, Cornwall. It appears in the canon of the arms and flag of the Episcopal Church.
|Cross crosslet fitchy||
Shown here is a cross crosslet fitchy, a very frequent charge in British and French armory, appearing in the arms of the House of Howard, the Marquess of Ailsa, the Earl Cathcart, Macpherson of Cluny, Rattray of that Ilk, among many others. This is probably the most common form of the cross fitchy but others do exist, such as the crosses formy fitchy found between the antlers of the stag supporters of South Buckinghamshire District Council, England.
|Cross of Saint James||
The Cross of Saint James is similar to a cross flory fitchy, but is more sword-like. (The version shown on the left is the one used by the order of Santiago.) Found in the Scottish arms of Mulino from Venezuela (Scots Public Register volume 87, page 20) and in the coats of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain; and Caracas, Venezuela; Santiago de Tete, Mozambique.
A cross erminée is a cross of four ermine-spots, with the heads meeting, sharing their spots. Historically borne by Hurston (Cheshire, England) c. 1490 and others
|Cross of Saint of Julian
Cruz de San Julián
Used by the Spanish Order of Alcántara
|Cross of Cerdanya or Cruz de Cerdaña||
Defined as a square set on one corner with a semi-circular notch in each side.
The Victory Cross (Asturian and Spanish: Cruz de la Victoria) is an early 10th century Asturian Christian ornamented processional cross, which was, as an inscription says, made in 908 in the Castle of Gauzón (Avilés, Asturias, Spain). It is a crux gemmata or jewelled cross, given by King Alfonso III of Asturias, who reigned from 848 to 910, to Cathedral of San Salvador of Oviedo (Asturias, Spain).
There are numerous other variations on the cross in heraldry. See heraldry for background information.
James Parker's A Glossary of Terms Used in Heraldry (1894) is online, and contains much information about variants of crosses used in heraldry.
Several flags have crosses, including all the nations of Scandinavia, whose crosses are known as Scandinavian crosses, and many nations in the Southern Hemisphere, which incorporate the Southern Cross. The Flag of Switzerland since the 17th century has displayed an equilateral cross in a square (the only square flag of a sovereign state apart from the Flag of the Vatican City); the Red Cross emblem was based on the Swiss flag.
Sovereign state flags with crosses
Flag of Burundi
Flag of Denmark
Flag of Dominica
Flag of Dominican Republic
Flag of Finland
Flag of Georgia
Flag of Greece
Flag of Iceland
Flag of Jamaica
Flag of Malta
Flag of Portugal
Flag of Norway
Flag of Serbia
Flag of Slovakia
Flag of Sweden
Flag of Switzerland
Flag of Tonga
Flag of United Kingdom
Other selected flags and arms with crosses
Flag of England
Flag of Scotland and San Andres
Flag of Quebec
Flag of Nova Scotia
Flag of Red Cross
Flag of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Flag of the Navy, Italy
Flag of Madeira Autonomous Region
Flag of Portugal (1095)
Southern cross appearing on a number of flag
St Piran's Flag (Flag of Cornwall)
As a design element
|Compass rose||A compass rose, sometimes called a windrose, is a figure on a compass, map, nautical chart or monument used to display the orientation of the cardinal directions and often appears as a cross tapering to triangular points.|
|Crossed keys||Symbol of the Papacy used in various emblems representing the keys to heaven.|
|Crossed swords||The crossed swords symbol (⚔ at Unicode U+2694) is used to represent battlegrounds on maps. It is also used to show that person died in battle or that a war machine was lost in action. Two crossed swords also look like a Christian cross and the mixed symbolism has been used in military decorations. It is also a popular way to display swords on a wall often with a shield in the center|
|Dagger/Obelisk||A typographical symbol or glyph. The term "obelisk" derives from Greek ὀβελίσκος (obeliskos), which means "little obelus"; from Ancient Greek: ὀβελός (obelos) meaning "roasting spit". It was originally represented by the ÷ symbol and was first used by Ancient Greek scholars as critical marks in manuscripts.|
|Four-leaf clover||Used as a symbol for luck as well as a stand in for a cross in various works.|
|Isometric illusion||Crosses frame this cube that appears to be hollow or solid and projected either inward or outward. A similar design was photographed in a crop circle. This design can be made by repeating the central hexagon outward once on all 6 sides then erasing some inner line segments and filling in the voids.|
|Skull and crossbones||Traditionally used to mark Spanish cemeteries; the symbol evolved to represent death/danger, poison, and pirates.|
Other noteworthy crosses
The tallest cross, at 152.4 metres high, is part of Francisco Franco's monumental "Valley of the Fallen", the Monumento Nacional de Santa Cruz del Valle de los Caidos in Spain.
The tallest freestanding cross in the United States is located in Saint Augustine, FL and stands 208 feet.
- Astrological symbols -the cross symbolically represents matter in many of these glyphs.
- Astronomical symbols -the crossmark may have been added to Christianize pagan god symbols.
- Cross-ndj (hieroglyph)
- Cross and Crown
- Cross burning
- Cross necklace
- Crossroads (mythology)
- "Ur Region Archaeology Project". Urheritage.tumblr.com. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- "Budded Cross". Seiyaku.com. 2008-11-25. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- Doppeltkors (Danish)
- Becker, Udo (2000). The Continuum encyclopedia of symbols. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-8264-1221-8.
- McGuckin, John Anthony (2011). "Cross". In John Anthony McGuckin. The encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity 1. John Wiley and Sons. p. 170. ISBN 978-1-4051-8539-4.
- Ogechukwu, Nwaocha (2009). The Secret Behind the Cross and Crucifix. Strategic Book Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-60693-367-1.
- Duquette, Lon Milo (2007). The Ankh: Key of Life. Weiser Books. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-57863-410-1.
- Liungman, Carl G. (2004). Symbols - Encyclopedia of Western Signs and Ideograms. Ionfox AB. p. 140. ISBN 978-91-972705-0-2.
- Thomas, Robert Murray (2007). Manitou and God: North-American Indian religions and Christian culture. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 121–122. ISBN 978-0-313-34779-5.
- Zielinski, Siegfried; Link, David; Wagnermaier, Silvia; Fuerlus, Eckhard; Custance, Gloria (2006). Variantology 2: On Deep Time Relations of Arts, Sciences and Technologies. W. König. ISBN 9783865600509. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
- "NSC NETWORK – Analogical review on Saint Thomas Cross- The symbol of Nasranis-Interpretation of the Inscriptions". Nasrani.net. 2008-02-29. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- Nationalencyklopedin. "Georgskors", retrieved on 2010-08-12.
- "МПЦ додели највисоки одличја на 22 еминентни научници, уметници и бизнисмени" (in Macedonian). Премин. 6 April 2011. Retrieved 2012-04-06.
- "Hate Symbols: Celtic Cross – From A Visual Database of Extremist Symbols, Logos and Tattoos", Anti-Defamation League, accessed 23 July 2010
- "Fitchy". New International Encyclopedia. 1905.
- Rines, George Edwin, ed. (1920). "Fitché". Encyclopedia Americana.
- Terminology of Robson, Thomas, The British Herald
- "A Glossary Of Terms Used In Heraldry By James Parker". Heraldsnet.org. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- Chevalier, Jean (1997). The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols. Penguin ISBN 0-14-051254-3.
- Drury, Nevill (1985). Dictionary of Mysticism and the Occult. Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-062093-5.
- Koch, Rudolf (1955). The Book of Signs. Dover, NY. ISBN 0-486-20162-7.
- Webber, F. R. (1927, rev. 1938). Church Symbolism: an explanation of the more important symbols of the Old and New Testament, the primitive, the mediaeval and the modern church. Cleveland, OH. OCLC 236708.
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Crosses.|
- Seiyaku.com, all Crosses - probably the largest collection on the Internet
- Lutheransonline.com, variations of Crosses—images and meanings
- Cross & Crucifix - Glossary: Forms and Topics
- Nasrani.net, Indian Cross
- Freetattoodesigns.org, The Cross in Tattoo Art
- The Christian Cross of Jesus Christ: Symbols of Christianity, Images, Designs and representations of it as objects of devotion