Alluding to the Prototype

This chapter will examine how miraculous crosses and crucifixes were perceived as miraculous, not only based on the legends and traditions surrounding them but also based on accounts of their appearance. Could each miraculous cross or crucifix employ different visual strategies in order to affect its audience? It is possible that the cross from Borre and the crucifixes from Røldal and Fana were designed in a particular way to persuade the beholders of their wonderworking powers. By more thoroughly investigating their iconography, form, and size, we will examine whether and how they alluded to the prototype so that the pious actively engaged with them.