Eight-pointed crosses - according to historical information, are the most reliable in shape of the cross on which Christ was crucified. What material the cross is made of is not particularly critical. But it is better to give preference to such natural materials like wood and metal.
Crosses on the grave: dimensions
If you want to place a cross on a grave, the dimensions do not have standard proportions. But it’s still better to stick to these values. The height of the cross is divided by three. The crossbar is located under the top third. In turn, the upper third is divided into two.
A sign is attached to that place. The length of the lower part of the tablet is equal to 1/2 third of the upper part of the cross (it turns out that the tablet and the upper third of the cross create an equilateral cross).
The width of the cross bar is 1/3 of the height multiplied by two. It turns out that the top end is 1/3 of the height of the center of the cross, the sides are 1/3, and the bottom is 2/3. An inclined bar is attached to the lower part of the cross, which is parallel to the vertical upper part of the cross and is located above the third lower part of the cross. The tilt of the bar is 45 degrees. Its length is equal to the length of the plate.
The cross is located on a base that symbolizes Golgotha and looks like steps. On the left side of the cross, from the base of the cross, a spear is depicted. If you divide the transverse end of the cross into three, then the beginning of the spear at the base of the cross is at 1/3 from the center, and the end (sharp part) is 2/3. The length from the tip of the spear to the transverse end is equal to 1/3 of the transverse end.
A sponge is also depicted on the right. All available proportions are very relative, and the cross is not always depicted this way.
Where and how to place a cross on a grave
The cross installed on the grave is a preacher of immortality and future resurrection. According to custom, the deceased is lowered into the grave facing east, with the words with which it is customary to pray to the east - in the hope of the coming of the Morning of Eternity, and in the meaning that the deceased goes from the West (sunset) of life to the East of eternity. In memory of the fact that the gates to the Kingdom of the Lord were opened by the crucifixion of our Savior, an eight-pointed cross is placed over the grave mound as a symbol of salvation. The deceased Christian believed in the Crucified One, wore a pectoral cross during his earthly life, and now rests under the cover of the cross. It is installed at the feet of the deceased. The crucifix is turned to the face of the deceased, so that at the resurrection of the deceased, rising from the grave, he would see a sign of the Lord’s victory over the devil.
Before installing a cross on the grave, you need to take into account all the details, because the installation process and materials that may be needed will depend on them.
Preparatory work begins with the need to decide what material the tombstone will be made of. Mostly crosses are made of wood and metal.
Heavier tombstones and crosses - made of stone and various stone chips. Let's consider the installation of all types of crosses.
Also, all monuments in the form of a cross can be divided into Orthodox and Catholic.
Wooden
If the cross is made independently, then you need to pay attention correct selection wood species, as well as its careful preparation and processing.
Since the tree is not durable material, and strongly depends on humidity, it is better to choose coniferous trees or give preference to oak. In the first case, nature impregnated the wood with pine resins, protecting it from any weather conditions. As for oak, this strong tree is quite resistant to moisture and will last in the ground for a long time.
Now you can start installation. To securely fix the cross in the ground, you can use two methods. The first involves filling the hole cement mortar. In the second method, support beams are attached to the base of the cross, with the help of which it will be held in the ground.
To do this, you need to make two pairs of legs, and attach them at the very bottom of the base and a little higher - shallow from the surface of the earth. The legs need to be fastened both horizontally and vertically.
Then it, together with the supporting legs, is placed in a hole, the width and depth of which must correspond to the dimensions of the cross itself, otherwise it will lead and it may tilt or fall. When installing, you need to try to secure the base in the ground as firmly and reliably as possible.
Since the soil tends to sag, it is better to use clay when filling the hole. It will set, will not allow moisture to pass through, will not sag, and will not be washed out by rain. Then, after some time, when the rains come and the soil settles, it will be necessary to fill the hole. If there is no rain, you will need to wait.
Metal
A metal cross in a similar way. Just like wood, iron must be treated with alkyd or other paint that protects the metal from corrosion. If there are unpainted areas left, moisture will cause the cross to become covered with rust, lose its aesthetic appearance, and its service life will be significantly reduced.
For installation metal product would be better suited concrete mortar. It fills all the voids in the pit and, after hardening, does not shrink the soil and is resistant to changes in temperature and humidity.
Granite cross
The main difficulty when installing stone tombstones is that they have heavy weight. Therefore, you need to install the granite cross carefully. The difficulty will also be to position it evenly. Otherwise, installation is quite simple and does not take much time.
Because natural stone Because it is resistant to weather influences, it does not require treatment. But it is better to coat products made from stone chips with antifungal and moisture-protecting solutions, otherwise the cross will become covered with moss.
For the installation of stone tombstones at the manufacturing stage, provisions are made special fastenings. But they may be different for each product. Most often, metal piles in width and length are screwed to the base of the cross. Then the structure is dug into the ground and filled up.
The heavy weight of a stone tombstone ensures that it will not tilt or fall.
Grave crosses, which are placed on Christian graves immediately after the funeral of the deceased, are most often made of wood.
Usually them together with others necessary accessories purchased at a funeral store. However, sometimes situations arise when, for example, the store is inaccessible, and a cross is necessary. Alternatively, someone may simply want to make their own crucifix for the grave as a special way to express their love for the deceased.
Of course, this work will require both artistic and special technical skills from a person.
Only their presence will allow you to work fruitfully with the material from which you plan to make the cross. In addition, each stage of the manufacturing process will require its own special tool.
Calculations and model creation
First you need to draw a sketch of a model of the future cross.
At the same time, you will develop a design concept and lay down required dimensions products. They are calculated in accordance with the proportions of the “golden ratio”, characteristic of the ideal human body.
This tradition comes from ancient times. Such was the cross of the Savior on which he was crucified.
Dimensions
If we take the value of 1.618 m as the base height of the cross, then further
the ratios should be as follows:
— the length of the central crossbar will be 1.618 m;
- the distance from it to the top, as well as the length of the top bar will be 0.382 m;
— the top crossbar should be 0.236 m from the middle one;
- from the top to the first short crossbar the distance is calculated at 0.146 m;
- between the lower braid and the base you need to measure 0.5 m.
Only after careful measurements and calculations, as well as subsequent accurate drawing of the sketch, do you begin to create a layout, according to which you can subsequently begin making the cross itself.
Materials for production
It is necessary to decide what the grave crucifix will be made of. The entire subsequent process of preparation, and then the actual manufacturing of the product, primarily depends on this.
Most popular materials in our case they are wood, metal and stone.
It's easiest to do it yourself wooden cross. To get a correct and beautiful frame of the model, you will need basic carpentry skills.
If you then want to decorate almost finished product thread, you will also need artistic ability. At the very end of the work, the wood must be treated with stain and varnished to protect it from negative impact environment.
Metal is a less malleable material than wood and requires very special skills and approaches.
However, it is no less suitable for artistic treatment. A skilled craftsman is able to produce very beautiful things from it. The most common method of making a metal grave cross is forging.
The results of the measurements turned out to be very encouraging. The cross of 1637 practically coincided with, in which the royal fathom is used as a large crossbar, and the axis is the sum of the church and folk fathoms!
Really:
1) The large crossbar of the Nikon cross is 193.5 cm. This is only 4 cm less than the value of the royal fathom given in and used in drawing up the projects. When considering, it should be taken into account that the projects involve the production of crosses from logs with the upper part of the axle and crossbars hewn out onto the timber. And Nikon's cross is made of thick boards.
2) The height of Nikon's cross from Golgotha is 309.5 cm. The exact height of the original Golgotha is not known. If we put it equal to 20 cm, then the height of Nikon’s cross with Golgotha exactly matches the height of the project cross(also with Golgotha).
3) The width of the crossbar of the Nikon cross is 21.5 ± 0.3 cm, which is the most. In the projects of the author of the site, this size is proposed to be taken as spans from the basic fathoms: royal, church and folk. Consequently, in the cross of 1637, apparently, the fourth basic fathom was used - the measured flywheel.
When analyzing the results obtained, the following circumstances must be taken into account:
1) The dimensions of Old Russian fathoms were determined on the basis of measurements of numerous structures. And mostly large structures - church buildings. And when measuring large structures, the errors are inevitably larger than when measuring relatively small structures, such as a cross. are inevitably of an evaluative nature, and no assessment of the error of the results obtained is given. From this it can be assumed that either the nominal value of the royal fathom given in requires correction, or carrying out, removing the difference between 197.4 and 193.5.
2) When installed, any cross goes into the ground a little more or a little less than planned. The boulder calvary is also assembled without the use of graph paper.
3) There are also manufacturing errors. For example, I planned to make a crossbar with a width of 23.3 cm, and after marking the log, trimming with an axe, and stripping with a staple, you can get 22 cm. At the same time, different sides crossbar sizes always vary at least slightly. By the way, the manufacturing error in the width of the crossbars on Patriarch Nikon’s cross is about 0.6 cm.
Consequently, some discrepancy in the sizes of the crosses (which were not even transferred from place to place) does not at all indicate that they were made according to various projects. Moving the cross to another place (as happened with the cross of Patriarch Nikon) inevitably changes its size.
Interestingly, the relative parameters of the projects and the cross of 1637 are almost the same:
Table No. 8.
| H/A | B/A | D/A | |
| Cross 1637 | 339,4/193,5=1,75 | 274,9/193,5=1,42 | 21,5/193,5=0,11 |
| Projects (vintage diagram) | |||
| Dfolk = 19.9 cm. | 1,72 | 1,41 | 19,9/197,4=0,1 |
| Dchurch=23.3 cm. | 1,72 | 1,36 | 23,3/197,4=0,12 |
| Dtsarskaya=24.68 cm. | 1,72 | 1,34 | 24,68/197,4=0,13 |
Taking into account the above, we can conclude that the designs of the crosses exactly coincide with the oldest surviving cross from 1637. Since the projects were developed on the basis of the ancient Russian system of measures of length without using the measurements of the Nikon cross, one can with good reason hope that the designs of the crosses are approaching the Divine Law. At the same time, we can assume with a high degree of confidence that the method that ancient masters used when designing the Nikon cross and, apparently, other similar crosses has been revealed.
Considering that our ancestors followed traditions much more zealously, it can be assumed that the Savior was crucified on a cross of precisely this size.
Rule for determining the size of crosses
Can be formulated next rule cross design:
When determining overall dimensions crosses should be used 2-4 fathoms from. The relationship between the large crossbar (A) and the distance from the large crossbar to the ground (B) must be B = sqrt(2)* A. The best set fathoms are church, royal, folk. It was this set of fathoms that was used in the design of temples.
It is important to note that such a cross contains an encrypted formula that will save Russia: “Orthodoxy, Autocracy, Nationality.”
Signs, superstitions and instructions of the Church about crosses on the grave.
The symbol of Christ's crucifixion - the cross - has been shrouded in a mysterious shroud of riddles, secrets and superstitions since ancient times. Many of these signs have taken on a religious form since Christianity spread throughout the world, choosing the cross as its symbol.
According to religious dogmas, death is an important, turning point event in the life of every person. Moreover, monks and elders call life preparation for death, since it is with the end of “earthly affairs” that the soul meets the Lord. Therefore, it is not surprising that so many different religious instructions and instructions are associated with the burial rite. A very important one is the installation of a cross on the grave of a deceased Christian.
The cross is a shrine that is revered and arouses reverence among all Christians. And in this regard, when installing it on the grave, some problems may arise. practical questions, caused by the fear of offending a sacred symbol, thereby incurring divine wrath.
How to install a cross on a grave?
Based on the traditions of Orthodox Christianity, the grave is placed in such a way that the head of the deceased is directed to the west and the legs to the east. According to biblical accounts, this is how Jesus was buried.
A tombstone cross is placed at the feet of the deceased, so that at the moment when the soul leaves its final refuge, it can see in front of it the holy symbol of forgiveness and offer prayers before it. Catholic traditions require placing a cross above your head. It is believed that when leaving the earth, the soul kisses the crucifix, expressing its submission and devotion to Christian teaching.
What to do with the old cross?
On the day of the funeral, an ordinary wooden cross is placed on the grave. This is done not only for religious reasons, but also for practical ones: a wooden structure is quite light in weight (compared, for example, with stone tombstones), and therefore its installation will not interfere with the natural subsidence and compaction of the soil at the burial site.
But when the time comes to install a new, permanent headstone, the cross is dismantled and the question arises of what to do with it. It is really impossible to throw away a shrine in the trash, as this is a sign of disrespect. It is recommended to burn a wooden cross as unnecessary. If such a need arises, you should ask the cemetery administration where this can be done. As a rule, each graveyard has places for such needs.
If the cross is well preserved, it can be given to a workshop or even sold. According to clergy, there is nothing forbidden or shameful in installing an old crucifix. In addition, an old tombstone can become the personification of the deceased’s non-covetousness, his meekness and lack of desire for material, earthly goods.
What to do if the cross is askew or has fallen?
Due to bad weather, a tombstone, especially a temporary one made of lightweight material and installed without a solid foundation, can become askew or even fall. If the crucifix is lopsided, it should be corrected, a dense earthen mound should be made and it should be compacted well. The cross should stand straight on the grave.
There are two opinions about fallen crosses, but they agree that this is an unfavorable sign. Some argue that a toppled tombstone can simply be reinstalled, but with a better installation this time. According to others, the fallen cross should be burned and a new one installed in its place. Be that as it may, the Church recommends ordering a prayer service for the repose or lighting a candle if this happened at the grave of your loved one.
Signs and superstitions
WITH grave crosses many associate various superstitions. They cast fortunes on them, remove and damage them, cast love spells and conspiracies. Orthodox Church disapproves of such rituals; they are called pagan. The Holy Fathers assert that if you notice unkind signs associated with tombstone crosses, as if someone wants to bring trouble upon you, you should not be afraid and take it too seriously. You need to strengthen your faith, go to church, pray, take holy communion, then no misfortunes will be able to touch you or your family.
One way or another, many different signs and religious requirements are associated with crosses. To bury a loved one, thoroughly observing the instructions of the Church, is a laudable, good desire, but if faith lives in the heart and sincere prayers for the deceased come from the depths of the soul, then one should not be afraid to allow small errors related to the installation of a tombstone cross.