Christian Crosses with Lettering

When crucifixions were commonplace, it was customary to affix a board at the top of the cross detailing the crimes of the crucified person. This board was called titulus hence the name Titulus Cross. The plaque is stylised as an upper beam on the Patriarchal Cross, Orthodox Cross, Papal Cross and others. Sometimes the lettering is carved onto the vertical beam, without the additional upper horizontal bar, which we still refer as a Titulus Cross.

Titular Cross

If a Christian cross has an inscription, it is most often INRI, since this represents the wording on Christ's cross. Other lettering includes PAX and ΦΩΣ ΖΩΗ (Phos Zoe), and monograms (Christograms or Chrismons) such as ΑΩ (Alpha & Omega), XP (Chi Rho), ICXC, IHS and ΙΧΘΥΣ (Ichthys). The characters are usually Latin or Greek.

Logo Cross

Such crosses are shown below, plus a few other crosses which happen to include significant lettering. These are popular with various Christian organisations, such as the 'Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops', whose logo (shown on the right) is a Latin Cross with a circular arrangement of letters to form a Celtic Cross.