Minster, through the cloister, to the cemetery of the order where the graves were sprinkled with holy water, while the nuns made reference to salvation through the cross in an antiphon. This role has been attributed to the Cross of Otto and Mathilde by Beuckers on the grounds that it is the oldest and most elaborate of the four processional crosses at Essen. A similar procession, known from other convents, symbolised the resurrection of Christ from the dead and was included in the Easter liturgy. It had an intercessory character and was connected to memorial rituals. About the Essen procession, the Liber Ordinarius dictated that, unlike usual practice, the front side of the cross should look back at the procession. With the Cross of Otto and Mathilde this would have the effect that the siblings depicted on the donor portrait on the front side would be part of the procession, a fraternal prayer from beyond the grave which would be perfect for a donation made in memoriam. Modern day Despite its age and art historical significance, the Cross of Otto and Mathilde is no museum piece. Its religious use as a processional cross has never ceased. At the enthronement of the first Bishop of Essen on 1 January 1958, it was carried in front and it was used as a processional cross by him on high feasts and in processions. This practice was changed under his successors on conservation grounds, with a modern processional cross on the model of the Cross of Otto and Mathilde used on these occasions. At the mass held for the ordination of the Essen cathedral treasury chamber extension on 15 May 2009, the thousand year old cross served as an altar cross for the treasury. Notes Bibliography Georg Humann. Die Kunstwerke der Münsterkirche zu Essen. Schwann, Düsseldorf 1904, pp. 115–160. Lasko, Peter, Ars Sacra, 800-1200, Yale University Press, 1995 (2nd edn.) Alfred Pothmann. Der Essener Kirchenschatz aus der Frühzeit der Stiftsgeschichte. In: Günter Berghaus (ed.): Herrschaft, Bildung und Gebet. Gründung und Anfänge des Frauenstifts Essen. Klartext-Verlag, Essen 2000, , pp. 135–153. Klaus Gereon Beuckers. "Das Otto-Mathilden-Kreuz im Essener Münsterschatz. Überlegungen zu Charakter und Funktion des Stifterbildes." in Katrinette Bodarwé, Thomas Schilp (edd.), Herrschaft, Liturgie und Raum. Studien zur mittelalterlichen Geschichte des Frauenstifts Essen (= Essener Forschungen zum Frauenstift. Vol. 1). Klartext-Verlag, Essen 2002, , pp. 51–80. Lydia Konnegen. "Verborgene Schätze. Der Essener Münsterschatz in Zeiten