Calvary (sculpture)
Encyclopedia
Crucifix
A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....
, sometimes encased in an open shrine
Shrine
A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....
, most commonly found across northern France from Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
east and through Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and equally familiar as wayside structures provided with minimal sheltering roofs in Italy and Spain. The Breton calvaire is distinguished from a simple crucifix cross by the inclusion of three-dimensional figures surrounding the Crucifixion
Crucifixion of Jesus
The crucifixion of Jesus and his ensuing death is an event that occurred during the 1st century AD. Jesus, who Christians believe is the Son of God as well as the Messiah, was arrested, tried, and sentenced by Pontius Pilate to be scourged, and finally executed on a cross...
itself, typically representing Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
and the apostles of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, though later saints and symbolic figures may also be depicted.
In northern France and Belgium, such wayside calvaries erected at the junction of routes and tracks "function both as navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
devices and objects of veneration
Icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...
", Nicholas J. Saunders has observed "Since medieval times they have fixed the landscape, symbolically acquiring it for the Christian faith
Christianised sites
One aspect of Christianisation was the Christianisation of sites that had been pagan. In the 1st centuries of Christianity churches were either house churches in whatever houses were offered for use by their owners, or were shrines on the burial-sites of martyrs or saints, which following the usual...
, in the same way that, previously, Megalith
Megalith
A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. Megalithic describes structures made of such large stones, utilizing an interlocking system without the use of mortar or cement.The word 'megalith' comes from the Ancient...
ic monuments marked prehistoric landscapes according to presumed religious and ideological imperatives".
The oldest surviving calvaire is at the Chapelle Notre-Dame
Blessed Virgin Mary (Roman Catholic)
Roman Catholic veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary is based on Holy Scripture: In the fullness of time, God sent his son, born of a virgin. The mystery of the incarnation of the Son of God through Mary thus signifies her honour as Mother of God...
-de-Tronoën in the town of Saint-Jean-Trolimon
Saint-Jean-Trolimon
Saint-Jean-Trolimon is a commune in the Finistère department in Bretagne in northwestern France.-Breton language:The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhoneg on September 17, 2004.-References:** -External links:* *...
, in south Finistère
Finistère
Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...
, near the Pointe de la Torche. This is raised on a large base which also includes carved representations of the Last Supper
Last Supper
The Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper provides the scriptural basis for the Eucharist, also known as "communion" or "the Lord's Supper".The First Epistle to the Corinthians is...
and scenes from the passion. Calvaires played an important role in Breton pilgrimages known as Pardons
Pardon (ceremony)
A Pardon is a typically Breton form of pilgrimage and one of the most traditional demonstrations of popular Catholicism in Brittany. Of very ancient origin, probably dating back to the conversion of the country by the Celtic monks, it is comparable to the parades associated with Saint Patrick's Day...
, forming a focal point for public festivals. In some instances the Calvary forms part of an outdoor pulpit or throne.
Calvaires are to be found in large numbers throughout Brittany, and come in many varied forms.
A 16th-century calvaire from Louargat, Brittany, transplanted to serve as a World War I memorial, stands at the Carrefour de la Rose near the Belgian town of Boesinghe north of Ypres.The most notable Calvary monument outside Brittany is at Lourdes
Lourdes
Lourdes is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in south-western France.Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees, famous for the Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes occurred in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous...
. This was specifically intended to represent Breton Catholicism. It was created by the sculptor Yves Hernot
Yves Hernot
Yves Hernot is the name of two sculptors, father and son, who ran the Ateliers Yves Hernot sculpture workshop in Lannion, Brittany, which specialised in creating Calvaries and tombs.-Hernot senior:...
in 1900 as a gift to Lourdes from the main Breton dioceses: Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
, Vannes
Vannes
Vannes is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2000 years ago.-Geography:Vannes is located on the Gulf of Morbihan at the mouth of two rivers, the Marle and the Vincin. It is around 100 km northwest of Nantes and 450 km south west...
, Quimper and Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Brieuc is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France.-History:Saint-Brieuc is named after a Welsh monk Brioc, who evangelized the region in the 6th century and established an oratory there...
. The monument comprises a single central cross set within a raised square base at each corner of which a statue of one of the witnesses to the crucifixion is placed.
In Central Europe, a calvary is a complex of shrines or chapels containing not only the sculpture or painting of Crucifixion of Jesus
Crucifixion of Jesus
The crucifixion of Jesus and his ensuing death is an event that occurred during the 1st century AD. Jesus, who Christians believe is the Son of God as well as the Messiah, was arrested, tried, and sentenced by Pontius Pilate to be scourged, and finally executed on a cross...
, but all the Station of the Cross. Calvaries are usually placed in parks near a church or a monastery. Their topography may imitate in a way the topography of Jerusalem, and the 11th station's shrine is located on a hill reassembling the Hill of Calvary then. If a calvary was founded in an inhabited place, it might result in a location of a new village or town. Several villages and towns are named after such a structure since it, e.g. Kalwaria Pacławska or Kalwaria Zebrzydowska
Kalwaria Zebrzydowska
Kalwaria Zebrzydowska is a town in southern Poland with 4,429 inhabitants . It is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship ; previously it was in the Bielsko-Biała Voivodeship ....
in Poland, Kalvarija in Lithuania etc.
See also
- High crossHigh crossA high cross or standing cross is a free-standing Christian cross made of stone and often richly decorated. There was a unique Early Medieval tradition in Ireland and Britain of raising large sculpted stone crosses, usually outdoors...
, British sculptures - Russian Calvary cross