Encolpions, also known as pectoral crosses, are characteristic primarily of the religious tradition of Kievan Rus’. Designed to hold relics, they consisted of two parts connected by a hinge with a pin on the edge of the upper arm, with a similar closure on the edge of the lower arm. They were cast from copper alloys, primarily bronze. They came in several types and sizes, with a precise classification reaching over a dozen types and varieties. The most striking were relatively large ones, decorated in relief, with round medallions at the ends of the arms and a large, decorative bead as a suspension. Their form derives directly from Byzantium. We present an example in the exhibition, as well as one of the varieties decorated with niello. It can be assumed that small and miniature encolpions with more modest decoration in relief, but also with niello or other types of inlay, examples of which are also shown, derive from the former. Most of them depicted the Crucifixion on the obverse, surrounded by saints at the ends of their arms, and the Virgin Mary on the reverse, also with saints. However, there were exceptions, not only in the form of swapping the images on both sides but also in other designs. A very popular depiction was that of the holy princes Boris and Gleb. On the smallest ones, the decoration is usually limited to emphasizing the image of the cross. It is not known exactly which saints’ relics were stored within them and who could have worn them. Scholars’ opinions are divided on whether they could only be worn by clergy or by laypeople as well. Encolpions with so-called secondary relics are found, but most have survived to this day without their contents. Most of them date from the 12th to the mid-13th century. In addition to reliquary crosses, there were also ordinary crosses, often double-sided, similar in form to encolpions and with similar depictions, primarily the Crucifixion. An example of such a cross was also included in our exhibition.
