The
Crucifixion
11th or 12th century,
Venezia
Ivory binding plaque
Musée National de l'Age Médiévale, Paris
The saints at the base of the plaque are St. Vitalis and his wife St. Valeria,
Milanese martyrs of the first or second centuries, traditionally said
to be the parents of SS. Gervasius and Protasius. Each carries
what might be iconographical attributes: a short rod and a book in St.
Vitalis' two hands, and a long rod with something like a flame in St.
Valeria's left hand.
Inscriptions identify Mary and St. John left and right of the
cross. Similarly, the personifications of the sun and moon above
the crosspiece are identified by the Latin words SOL and LVNA
respectively.
The head below the suppedaneum
is most likely that of Adam.
More of the Crucifixion
Photographed at the
site by Richard Stracke