Processional or Altar Cross. Limoges, France. Romanesque. Second quarter of the 13th century. An important processional or altar cross, with a double transverse bar.  Its wooden core is covered with engraved, punched, and gilded copper plates, adorned with champlevé enamel elements in shades of blue, yellow, green, and white, and cabochons of gemstones and coloured glass. It features an appliqué figure of Christ in embossed, engraved, and gilded copper, with a long loin cloth adorned with blue and turquoise champlevé enamel and glass eyes. Height 39.5 cm. Crosses with a double transverse bar, originating in the Byzantine era, were considered staurothekes, that is, reliquaries of the True Cross. This tradition persisted in Limoges amongst the precious metalworkers, as demonstrated by this rare specimen, although it has unfortunately lost its precious relic, which was located on the upper transverse bar, above the head of Christ. Few specimens like this cross have survived. One that has is the cross kept at the Castle Museum in Norwich, Norfolk, England, although it is in a considerably worse condition than this one, as it retains none of the gilding, gemstones, or the relic (Inventory No. NWHCM: 1846.97).  There is also the cross kept in the Church of the Temple of Carentoir in France. An interesting feature can be seen on this cross, also found on the Bonneval Cross, which is part of the Musée de Cluny collection (Inventory No. Cl. 22888), and that is the widening at the end of each arm—a form inherited from Carolingian or Byzantine art that would later be taken up again in Catalan precious metal-working. According to Dr. Paul Thoby's classification in 'Les Croix limousines de la fin du XIIe siècle au début du XIVe siècle,' Paris, Editions A. et J. Picard, 1953; this crucifix belongs to the second group, i.e. from the late 12th century to the mid-13th century. These are crosses with a wooden core and a covering of fine engraved and stamped copper plates with applications of champlevé enamel, featuring an appliqué figure of Christ in enamelled copper at the centre. Dr. Thoby's work is truly interesting, as he mentions in the book's introduction that, upon visiting the magnificent Limoges enamel exhibition organised in 1948 in Limoges itself and which presented a never-before-seen collection, he realised that out of the nearly two hundred objects exhibited — pyxes, reliquaries, pastoral staffs, plates, etc.—only two were processional crosses. As he writes, these types of crosses are rare because they usually had a wooden core covered with gilded or enamelled copper plates; many, losing the wooden core due to woodworm, were reconstructed, melted, or their parts were scattered. Previously, in 1890, Ernest Rupin mentioned ten processional crosses with champlevé enamel, so an in depth study of these crosses was pending.  A brilliant study was then initiated by M. Marquet de Vasselot. Initially, the focus was on processional crosses, but it soon became apparent that it was impossible to discriminate between these and altar crosses, as most of the time in the 12th and 13th centuries, it was the same cross that processed and was later placed on the altar. It had to be of considerable size to be seen by all the worshippers from afar. The study, therefore, focused on all Limoges enamel crosses regardless of their size, from the late 12th century to the first quarter of the 14th century, a time when champlevé enamel disappeared abruptly. At the end of the study, a total of 116 crosses were recorded between France and other countries. Our cross is in a very satisfactory state of preservation. It retains all the gilded copper plates, most with engraved decoration and champlevé enamel applications. There are slight flaws and restoration work, such as the right arm of Christ, which has been reconstructed. This lot has been imported, so it has a guaranteed export permit from the Ministry of Culture.   Provenance: - Aguttes, Neuilly, France. Auction June 17, 2008, lot 156. - Private collection in Limoges.   Reference biography: - Thoby, Paul. (1953). 'Les Croix limousines de la fin du XIIe siècle au début du XIVe siècle'. Editions A. et J Picard. - Thoby, Paul. (1963). 'Le Crucifix des Origines au Concile de Trente. Supplément'. Bellanger. - Exposition Paris - New York 1995/1996, L'œuvre de Limoges, Émaux limousins du Moyen Age, Musée du Louvre - The Metropolitan Museum of Art, cat.105, p 315-317.   Bibliography for comparisons: https://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/collections/collections-object-page?id=NWHCM+%3A+1846.97 https://www.passion-patrimoine.fr/spip.php?article54