The Salvator Mundi or Savior of the World and the four evangelists

At the intersection of the upper crosspiece and the vertical beam, the Salvator Mundi or Savior of the world evokes, in the context of the end of time (Apocalypse of John), the second coming (Parousia) of Christ. The Savior is characterized by the orb held in one hand, both a symbol of his domination over the terrestrial world and of the forbidden fruit, the cause of the fall of humanity. At the four extremities of the cross, the evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, identified by Latin inscriptions, are seized in the middle of writing like copyist monks. They bear witness by their writings to the Word of Christ and to his glory.

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