Burial chapel Orovics

Symbols: Jesus praying in Gethsemane; Greek cross

At the family tomb Orovics, you can see relief in stone, which depicts Jesus kneeling and prayin. This motif is full of symbolism of the New Testament and shows the human side of the Son of God. Motif depicts moments shortly after the Last Supper Jesus became aware of inevitability of next day's fatal events, which marked the world for next millenniums. This motif is otherwise very common in art. It was portrayed by Renaissance painters Andrea Mantegna and Giovanni Bellini, romantic poet and artist William Blake, Baroque painter Michelangelo Merisi the Caravaggio and many others. In the form of the oratorio was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven.

The stories in the four Gospels about this event are slightly different, but they also have a common point. Jesus in the garden with old olives at the foot of the mountain Olive prayed for strength and confidence, to accept his own passion as reflection of the will of God.

This motif of Jesus, praying in Gethsemane garden, represents the first mystery of the Rosary and the first station of the Sacred Passion in Roman Catholic tradition. It is a symbol of unwavering faith. This motif has also developed in a tradition of so-called holy hours. In 1673 saint Margaret Mary Alacoque claimed that she had a vision in which Jesus appeared and told her, that in the evening of every Thursday she must meditate on his suffering in Garden Gethsemane. This practice later become widespread among Roman Catholic believers, therefore, it is not surprising, that this motif is relatively common in Pobrežje cemetery. With more than 20 examples in stone engraved drawings this motif is certainly prevalent among depictions of Jesus' life.

But in comparison with the number of crosses in the Pobrežje cemetery, this is a small group. On the tomb of family Orovics is also Greek cross, a version of a cross, which has four equal legs in ratio of right angle. The Cross is, together with circle, square and core one of the four fundamental symbols. It is connected to all three listed. The intersection of the horizontal and vertical line coincides with the centre, and opens it outwardly. Cross belongs to the circle, which divides it into four sections. If, however, we connected its extreme points with four straight lines, result will be square. The symbolism of the cross is thus largely associated with symbolism of number four.

The cross is also a symbol that has existed since the earliest times of human culture. It is known from Egypt, ancient China, Crete and Americas. In Europe, oldest known examples of cross are from Stone Age. Cross occurs also metal periods of prehistory, but assumes a key role in Christianity. It is therefore considered as the most comprehensive symbol, in which we can also find astronomical symbolism.

Cross is oriented toward four directions of space and so basis for all orientation symbols at various levels of human existence. Spatial orientation is formed on the east-west axis, indicate the sunrises and sunsets. Temporal orientation is formed on the earth's axis of rotation, more precisely on the axis south-north. Therefore, cross united heavens and earth, then time and space. This synthesis is confirmed in all cultural areas and flourishing in many variations.

The symbolism of the cross significantly enriched Christian tradition, which focused on the history of salvation and the Saviors suffering. So cross in Christianity symbolizes two natures of the crucified son of God, Christ the Saviour and Jesus and his human aspects. Greek cross on the grave of the family Orovics has related symbolism. We can see this form of cross also in other graves of Pobrežje cemetery, but in different combinations: as independent symbol, inscribed in a square and in circle. In last case, symbol is visually identical to the sun's Cross, which has a different content.

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