cloisonné plate on the cross might come from the workshop of Egbert, Archbishop of Trier. It is probable that only the enamel was made in Trier, and that the cross was assembled in another place. The halo on Christ's head reaches to the edge of the cross, while the three gemstones of the halo further emphasise the inclination of the head to the left. Between the feet, placed on the suppedaneum (footrest), and the donation plaque, there is the chased image of a snake, which is connected to the brazen snake of life in Numbers 21.4–9. According to another interpretation, however, it depicts a basilisk which refers to the Messiah as victor over evil in Psalm 91.13, "You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent." Above Christ's head there are two cloisonné plates with an inscription in three lines: IHC NA / ZARENVS / REX IVDEOR ("Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews"); the letters IHC stand for the first three letters of the name of Jesus in Greek. The back side of the cross is decorated with gilt copper sheeting and has a simpler engraved design, which shows the four Evangelists on the ends of the cross beams and the lamb of God at the centre. These images are connected by a Tree of Life. Iconographic significance The key to the interpretation and dating of the cross is the donation plate of the cross which has remained unchanged since its creation. On this plate, Otto, Duke of Swabia and Abbess Mathilde are depicted in court dress. The clothing depicted is probably Sogdian silk which came to the Frankish empire only in the form of gifts from the Byzantines. Similar fabric is held in the Essen cathedral treasury for wrapping up relics. Since Mathilde was abbess in Essen from 973 and she is not shown in the costume of an abbess, it is assumed in some newer scholarship that her depiction in the court dress of a high noble indicates that she appears here as the sister of Duke Otto and not in her role as abbess. Furthermore, the absence of symbols of a duke, such as a sword or a lance, for Otto suggest that the siblings are depicted as family members and not as dignitaries. Mathilde receives a cross from her brother. Otto holds the cross with two