Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2021 December 27

= December 27 =

Hungarian Cross
Why does the Hungarian coat of arms have a tipped cross? 173.189.209.25 (talk) 14:47, 27 December 2021 (UTC)
 * The crown in the Coat of arms of Hungary is the Holy Crown of Hungary. This has had a crooked cross since it was damaged in the 17th century. Obviously, they never bothered to have it repaired... --Wrongfilter (talk) 14:54, 27 December 2021 (UTC)
 * Citation needed, though. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:22, 28 December 2021 (UTC)
 * The Holy Crown of Hungary (p. 20) says that it was first depicted in a crooked state on a thaler coin of King Matthias II in 1609. Exactly how it was damaged is conjectural, but aside from the theory that it was bent by the lid of a chest mentioned in our article, The Holy Crown of Hungary, Visible and Invisible in a footnote on p. 425 says it may have been a "Sign of wear and tear or that of a botched job because of haste in the assembly of the diadem during a succession crisis?". Both articles record at length the crown's status as a national and religious relic of the greatest sanctity, so tinkering with it would not be undertaken lightly. Alansplodge (talk) 12:42, 28 December 2021 (UTC)