Unicode defines a character named "Maltese cross" in theDingbats range at code point U+2720 (✠); however, mostcomputer fonts render the code point as across pattée.
Grand MasterPierre d'Aubusson with senior knights, wearing the "Rhodian cross" on their habits. Dedicatory miniature inGestorum Rhodie obsidionis commentarii (account of theSiege of Rhodes of 1480), BNF Lat 6067 fol. 3v, dated 1483/4.Johann Loesel, grand prior of thelangue of Germany, shown with the eight-pointed cross on a flag and his habit in his role as mediator in theOld Zürich War in February 1446 (illustration ofGerold Edlibach's chronicle, c. 1500)Emblem of the Military Order of Malta on the façade ofSan Giovannino dei Cavalieri, Florence (1699).Fresco on the ceiling of the main corridor in theGrandmaster's Palace in Valletta (Nicolau Nasoni 1724)
TheKnights Hospitaller during theCrusades used a plain Latin cross. Occasional use of the modern form straight-edged "eight-pointed cross" by the order begins in the early 16th century.This early form is across moline (ancrée) or cross branchée ending in eight points, not yet featuring the sharp vertex of the modern design. The association of the eight-pointed cross with the southern Italy coastal town ofAmalfi may go back to the 11th century, as the design is allegedly found on coins minted by theDuchy of Amalfi at that time.[1]
Eight-pointed crosses appear on coins minted by the Grand Masters of the order, first shown as a bolsini-type cross embroidered on the left arm of the robe of the kneeling Grand Master on the obverse of a coin minted underFoulques de Villaret (r. 1305–1319)[2]In 1489, the statutes of the order require all knights of Malta to wear "the white cross with eight points".[3]
Emergence of the sharp vertex of the modern "four-arrowhead" design is gradual, and takes place during the 15th to 16th century. The "Rhodian cross" of the early 16th century had almost, but not quite, achieved the "sharp arrowhead appearance".The fully modern design is found on a copper coin dated 1567, minted by Grand MasterJean Parisot de Valette (r. 1557–1568).[4]In 1577,Alonso Sanchez Coello paintedArchduke Wenceslaus of Austria as Grand Prior of the Order of Malta wearing the emblem on his robes.
The design appears again on coins minted in the late 17th to 18th centuries. It is shown on a copper coin dated 1693, minted under Grand MasterAdrien de Wignacourt.[5]From the end of the 17th century, it is also occasionally displayed as alternative heraldic emblem of the order.Its depiction on the facade ofSan Giovannino dei Cavalieri dates to 1699.
Early form of the eight-pointed cross (cross fourchée), seal of the provost of St John's church, Stockholm, dated 1526.
The eight points of the eight-pointed cross have been given a number of symbolic interpretations, such as representing the eightLangues of theKnights Hospitaller (Auvergne, Provence, France, Aragon, Castille and Portugal, Italy, Germany, and the British Isles).[8][unreliable source?]or alternatively the "eight obligations or aspirations" of the knights.[8][unreliable source?]
The Maltese cross was depicted on the two-milscoin in of theMaltese lira in 1972, and on the reverse of one- and two-Euro coins introduced in January 2008.[10]
Australian Military awards, theDistinguished Service Cross andConspicuous Service Cross are modified versions of the Maltese Cross. TheDistinguished Service Cross was introduced in 1991 and is awarded for distinguished command and leadership in warlike operations. TheConspicuous Service Cross (CSC) is awarded only for outstanding devotion to duty, or outstanding achievement in the application of exceptional skills, judgement or dedication, in non-warlike situations.
ThePour le Mérite, Imperial Germany's highest award for military valor, was a blue-enameled, eight-pointed cross with golden eagles between the arms. It was founded in 1740 by the francophile Prussian KingFrederick the Great, and was adorned with the French legendPour le Mérite ("For merit") in gold. Awards of the military class ceased with the dissolution of theHohenzollern monarchy at the end of World War I in November 1918.
In 1967, laboratory tests, and flight tests atFort Rucker andFort Wolters, were conducted to determine the most highly visible and effective way to mark a helipad.[12]
Twenty-five emblem designs were tested, but the emblem depicting four blurred rotor blades, referred to as the "Maltese cross", was selected as the standard heliport marking pattern by the Army for military heliports, and by the FAA for civil heliports.
However, in the late 1970s, the FAA administrator repealed this standard when it was charged that the Maltese cross was antisemitic.[13] In the United States today, some helipads still remain bearing their original Maltese cross emblems.
The eight-pointed cross is also used to identify thefinal approach fix on FAA published approach plates. This is used on both precision and non-precision approaches.
The vessel classification society for the United States, theAmerican Bureau of Shipping, will assign the Maltese cross symbol to vessels and offshore units for which the hull construction and/or the manufacture of its machinery and components and any associated required testing, as applicable, is carried out under ABS survey.[14]
Several orders that are descended from the original Order of St John set up first aid and ambulance services. These also incorporated the Maltese cross into their logos:
The Bombeiros da Cruz de Malta (Maltese Cross Fire Brigade), a volunteer fire and medical emergency corps inLisbon, Portugal, founded by Portuguese members of the Order of Malta.
InIndia, the eight-pointed cross is the emblem used by theGarhwal Rifles andRajputana Rifles. It was introduced as the emblem of the Central Provinces Police (CPP) during the British colonial era, and is still used by its successor—theMadhya Pradesh Police—to this day. It is also used by theKolkata Police Force.
Det Norske Veritas uses the eight-pointed cross as symbol in the class notifications telling that the ship is constructed under their monitoring.
In the Philippines, the eight-pointed cross is part of the school seal ofColegio de San Juan de Letran. It was founded by Don Juan Alonso Jeronimo Guerrero, a retired Spanish officer and one of the Knights of Malta and FrayDiego de Santa María, O.P., a Dominican brother.
The eight-pointed cross is used by the Swedish Mounted Royal Guards as their emblem.
The eight-pointed cross is thetrademark of the oldest continuously operated Swisswatch manufacturer,Vacheron Constantin founded in 1755.
In theUnited Kingdom, the eight-pointed cross is the symbol used by rifle regiments, and has been incorporated into the badges of virtually all rifle units, including the cap badge of theBermuda Regiment, officers' cross belt of theGurkha Rifles[16] and now amalgamated, theRoyal Green Jackets.
The firstpostmark employed for thecancellation of the then new British postage stamps in the 1840s was the shape of an eight-pointed cross and named accordingly.
The eight-pointed cross appears on the shirts of St Mark's FC (West Gorton), the forebears of Manchester City Football Club.
The eight-pointed cross is the insignia ofMethodist College Belfast, and it appears on the blazers of the sixth-form pupils as its crest.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States orVFW, an organization of military veterans, uses the eight-pointed cross in its official emblem.
In US York Rite Freemasonry, theKnights Templar (Freemasonry) use the eight-pointed cross in the Order of the Knights of Malta.
The Military Division of theKappa Alpha Order, composed of members serving in or honorably discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces, uses an eight-pointed cross in the colors of The Order.
On the National Rail network, tickets marked with a Maltese cross are valid for travel onLondon Underground,Docklands Light Railway andThameslink between two London Terminals, allowing passengers to make journeys that cross London. Passengers can break their journey at any intermediate station but cannot then resume their journey by Tube, DLR or Thameslink using their cross-London ticket.
Passengers holding tickets to aLondon fare zone marked with a Maltese cross can make one journey from the London Terminal at which they arrived to the zone in question.
The "Maltese cross flower" (Lychnis chalcedonica) is so named because its petals are similarly shaped, though its points are more rounded into "heart"-like shapes. The flowerTripterocalyx crux-maltae was also named for the Maltese cross.[17] TheGeneva drive, a device that translates a continuous rotation into an intermittent rotary motion, is also sometimes called a "Maltese cross mechanism" after the shape of its main gear.
Standard form of thecross pattéeFirefighter's Cross, often mistaken for a Maltese cross
Eight-pointed crosses were adopted for use by the FrenchOrder of Saint Lazarus in the mid-16th century. The use of the green eight-pointed cross by the Order was retained right through to the 19th century and after the secular organization of the Order after 1910.[18]
It has been the official badge (combined with an ellipsoid in the center) of theDelta Phi fraternity since 1833. A similar cross is also used by theVeterans of Foreign Wars organization.
A variant of the Maltese cross, with three V-shaped arms instead of four, was used as the funnel symbol of theHamburg Atlantic Line and their successors German Atlantic Line and Hanseatic Tours in 1958–1973 and 1991–1997.
A five-armed variant is the "Cross" of the FrenchLegion of Honour (Croix de la Légion d'honneur).
Othercrosses with spreading limbs are often mistakenly called "Maltese", especially thecross pattée. The royal warrant which created theVictoria Cross prescribed a Maltese cross, but the medal has always in fact been a cross pattée. The official symbol of theAlpha Tau Omega fraternity is thecross pattée, though the organization's founder thought it was a Maltese cross when the organization was formed in 1865. TheNestorian cross also is very similar to both of these. The Unicode character “✠” (U+2720) is called a Maltese cross, but is in fact a cross pattée.
^"The goldtari also had two faces. The capite often had a globe or the Doge's initials, whilst some people claim that the cruce represented an eight-pointed cross, today one of the principle emblems of the city. The Amalfitan Tari circulated throughout the Mediterranean and was for centuries Amalfi's official monetary unit." (orderstjohn.org[unreliable source?])
^"The cross afterwards termed Maltese, is embroidered on his left arm."Robert Morris,Coins of the grand masters of the Order of Malta : or Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem (1884),p. 12
^[ Accessed: 6/16/2012Robert Morris,Coins of the grand masters of the Order of Malta : or Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem (1884),p. 25f., plate III.See also: Michael Foster,History of the Maltese Cross as used by the order of St. John of Jerusalem, 2004 (orderstjohn.org)] "The arms Rhodian had almost, but not quite, achieved the straight lined sharp arrowhead appearance, noted from the mid 16th century onwards."
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