This is an impressively large ( though not full-sized ) but light cross, useful for carrying in representations of Jesus's journey to Calvary.
The dimensions are not critical; our cross is about 2.2m broad and 3.5m high, with dimensions primarily determined by the amount of plastic drainpipe which was lying about in my garage. It is quite impressive, and still quite light. ( It is sufficiently realistic that at least two people have expressed their astonishment at the strength of the people carrying the cross ! )
It is made from rectangular-section plastic drainpipe. Our pipe was about 3.5cm x 2.8cm; it looked rather skinny used by itself, so we used two parallel sections fastened together with adhesive tape as a ( roughly ) 5.6cm x 3.5cm to make the members of the cross.
It is fairly cumbersome, so for easy storage the two members can "easily" be separated. To avoid unsightly attaching devices, we used string as indicated in the diagram. By pulling all strings tight and fastening them together in pairs across the top of the two vertical pipes a surprisingly firm joint is achieved, particularly if the holes in the pipes are cut fairly precisely.
The members were covered with brown cloth so that the constructional details were hidden - notably the adhesive tape bindings and the short segments of string which would otherwise be visible on the crossbar ( - so the string must be threaded through the holes BEFORE the cloth cover is firmly attached ). The cloth must be cut round the joint quite accurately, leaving a little overlap.
As we wanted a free-standing cross, we built a wooden stand to support it. This has a broad base to ensure stability, and is about 50cm tall so that the cross fits snugly without wobbling.
Click the picture for a separate version.
We used this cross in four of our services :
( It is noteworthy that the cross stand has been useful for several other purposes, most notably as the base for a projector table. )
2009 July