Abstract

The former territories of the Crown of Aragon preserve a large number of processional Gothic crosses of great material and artistic value. The background to this proliferation is the popularity of processions invoking protection and salvation, celebrating joy and bidding farewell to the deceased. While the written sources are not very explicit as far as the specific uses of the processional crosses are concerned, it can be inferred that, besides devotional motivations, their purpose was to increase the prestige and the reputation of the individual or the group who financed them