# The so-called "cross of confusion"
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [October 6, 2002, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014 "2002-10-06T00:50:05Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@jadmire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jadmire)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/1 "2002-10-06T00:50:05Z")
I’ve been wondering about this symbol for a long time. Fundamentalist Christians claim that the symbol, which resembles a cross with an upside-down question mark at the bottom, is a Satanist symbol originating in Roman times. It may or may not be a Satanist symbol (though it’s manifestly a Blue Oyster Cult symbol), but I personally think it very **unlikely** that it could have originated with the Romans. I took three years’ worth of Latin in high school and college, and I don’t recall that the Romans ever used any punctuation except for possibly the period. The sources I’ve been able to find on the web relating to punctuation mark history don’t say much about the question mark, but they do say that most modern punctuation originated _after_ the development of printing in Europe, which is to say in the 1400’s and 1500’s. So, is this just another urban legend?
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### Author:  [@Anomalocaris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anomalocaris)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/2 "2002-10-06T01:56:03Z")
This is the ancient Greek symbol for Kronos, father of the Titans. When tha Greek gods were assimilated by the Romans, Kronos became Saturn, and they used a different symbol. It’s not a Satanic symbol, but still makes a cool tatoo.
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### Author:  [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/3 "2002-10-06T02:23:08Z")
**Anomalocaris**. Not disagreeing, just need a cite or reference of that. Thanks.
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### Author:  [@Anomalocaris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anomalocaris)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/4 "2002-10-06T03:14:05Z")
My library is sadly depaupearte of ancient Greek religious references; however, the liner notes of Blue Oyster Cult’s “Wokshop of the Telescopes” confirms it is the mark of Kronos. I’ll get back to you with some more scholarly sources.
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### Author:  [@douglips](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/douglips)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/5 "2002-10-06T08:12:52Z")
The symbol for Kronos I don’t know, but I suspect it’s related to the symbol for Saturn, the latin version of Kronos.
[See it here](http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/saturn.html).
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### Author:  [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/6 "2002-10-06T09:04:27Z")
The site seems to be down, this morning, but If/When it comes back, go to
[http://www.symbols.com/](http://www.symbols.com/) and then go to the alphabetical index and look up Saturn. There are separate entries for Saturn, Saturn as god, Saturn in mythology, and Saturn - Kronos, with the symbols used and a bit of history on each.
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### Author:  [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)
#### Post date: [October 6, 2002, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-so-called-cross-of-confusion/131014/7 "2002-10-06T14:06:16Z")
**toms** reply allowed me to Google a bit better. Even though I couldn’t open that site, it almost certainly says that the “question mark” is actually a sickle. Saturn was the god of agriculture.