by Gregory Bloch, Director of Communications
The Thomsen Chapel processional cross is one of the most liturgical adornments in the collection of Saint Mark's Cathedral, but unless you attend the a.m. service, you may never have seen it. It has always been clear just by looking that the cross is a precious object. However, after a recent restoration, repair, and cleaning, it now gleams and sparkles in a way that it has not for many decades.
We know an unusual amount of detail about the creation of the cross, thanks to the whoever had the foresight to preserve a brief article in the August 1967 issue of Canadian Jeweler magazine [pdf]. The article explains that the cross was the creation of Jeffries & Co. Ltd. of Victoria, British Columbia, designed and crafted by Norman Griffin, one of the parters in the firm. It was made specifically for Saint Mark's, and is described as "Jeffries' most important single export to date." The article includes the following description: