Added to this are the symbols on the frontal which clearly and distinctly relate to the Passion with its central crown of thorns and three nails, as well as the other tools that would have been used in the same; the spear, the vinegar/gall, the ladder, the pincers and the hammer.
The design of this antependium is interesting insofar as it is a black design set on top of a white backdrop. Many might thereby find this confusing, believing that the background necessarily dictates the liturgical colour proper, but in reality this is not really the case. Certainly anyone interested in the history of vestment design will be quite familiar with this particular dynamic, and foregrounds and backgrounds have less to do with things than the matter of which is the dominant colour -- which, in this particular instance, it is black
