(a.k.a. "Cara Vaca" and "Cuernavaca")
This Cross takes its name from Caravaca (now known as Caravaca de la Cruz), Spain, a town in the province of Murcia where, in A.D. 1231, a priest was imprisoned by the Moors. Out of curiosity, his captors' King, Abu Zeid, asked him to say Mass, but as the priest began, he realized he didn't have the necessary Crucifix. As his captors grew angry, the Patriarch of Jerusalem's pectoral cross was transported to the priest through an open window, borne by two angels. Seeing this, King Abu Zeid converted to the true religion.
The "Caravaca Cross," then, is the two-armed Lorraine Cross that is used by Archbishops and Patriarchs. Some representations are Crucifixes, such as the one above, and may show the angels that carried the Cross, one on each side. The words "Caravaca" may appear on the second arm of the Cross such that "Cara" is on one side, and "vaca" on the other. This is a very popular Crucifix in Spain and Mexico.
