Latin cross
symbol of Christianity
A Latin cross or crux immissa is a type of Christian cross in which the vertical beam sticks above the crossbeam, giving the cross four arms. Typically, the two horizontal and upper vertical arms are the same length, although sometimes the vertical is shorter; however, the lower vertical arm is always much longer than any other arm.
When displayed upside down, it is called St. Peter's Cross, because according to Catholic tradition, he was executed on a cross of this type. When displayed sideways, it is called St. Philip's cross for an analogous reason.
Many churches of different time periods are designed using the Latin cross plan. When looked at from above, it takes the shape of a Latin cross. A Latin cross plan primarily contains a nave, transept, apse, and narthex.
History
In contemporary usage, the Latin cross is mostly used to represent all of Christianity and Christendom, depicting the central Christian tenet that Jesus sacrificed himself for humanity upon it, atoning for the sins of the world.
“Latin cross” enters the record as symbol of Christianity. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Latin, cross and symbol can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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This entry incorporates text from “Latin cross” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.