Christianity most likely arrived in Ethiopia in the first
century. The conversion of King Ezana in 330 c.e. led to its
official acceptance and the minting of coins bearing one of the
earliest uses of the cross as a Christian symbol. Although the
silver pendant crosses in the Museum’s collection are from the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries, their forms have a
considerably longer history, as the much older copper, wood, and
iron crosses here demonstrate. Hand crosses, which are used by
priests, are either hand-held or suspended from a cord around
the neck. They are kissed by the faithful to receive a blessing.
Processional crosses are carried on long poles in religious
processions. Prayer staffs are used to mark rhythms during
sacred dances and as supports to lean on while standing for long
hours during Orthodox church services. Together, all of these
crosses are emblems of the Ethiopian Orthodox church’s ongoing
authority. This text refers to these objects: ' 1997.168.1;
2000.123.1; 79.72.3; 79.72.6; 79.72.