<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><mads xmlns="http://www.loc.gov/mads/" xmlns:mods="http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.loc.gov/mads/
mads.xsd"><authority><topic authority="http://AATesaurus.cultura.gencat.cat/aat/getty_en">Maltese crosses</topic></authority><related type="broader"><topic>crosses</topic></related><variant type="other"><topic>Amalfi crosses</topic></variant><variant type="other"><topic>Maltese cross</topic></variant><variant type="other"><topic>crosses of eight points</topic></variant><variant type="other"><topic>crosses, Maltese</topic></variant> <note xml:lang="en"><![CDATA[ Crosses having four splayed arms; it is an eight-pointed cross comprising four deep V-shapes joined together at their apex, so that each arm has two points. The cross was originally the symbol of medieval Amalfi, a small Italian republic. The form has been in use since the First Crusade, when the eight points represented the eight facets of courage: loyalty, piety, honesty, bravery, honor, fearlessness, charity, and obedience to the church. ]]></note></mads>