Identifying crosses and religious pendants

Crucifixes, saints' medals, and pilgrim souvenirs of personal faith.

Devotional pendants are abundant from the medieval period onward. Forms include plain Latin crosses, crucifixes (with the corpus of Christ), reliquary crosses that open (including the Byzantine-tradition enkolpion with hinged halves), and stamped saints' medals — especially common after the 17th century, with the Miraculous Medal (from 1830) perhaps the most frequent of all.

Read the imagery: a corpus with four nails and upright posture points earlier medieval; three nails and slumped form later. Medals name their saints around the rim, often in Latin, with places of pilgrimage identifiable — a legible inscription is usually a solved identification.

These objects mark personal loss and devotion; catalogue them with that dignity. Record inscriptions verbatim, note casting versus stamping, and date medals by their named devotions — many commemorate dateable events, apparitions, or canonisations.

From the guide library inside Collectors Catalogues, a free app for cataloguing antiques and finds with honest, museum-grade records.

More on jewellery

Dating medieval brooches — Form, pin, and section are your clues.

Identifying brooch and fibula types — Spring, bow, and catch.

Identifying finger rings — Hoop, shoulders, and bezel.

Identifying beads — Material, perforation, and wear.

Identifying cameos and intaglios — Carved in relief or sunk.

Identifying earrings — Hoops, pendants, and wires from four thousand years of pierced ears.

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