Wayside cross 330m NNW of Higher Woodley

Overview

Location

Reasons for Designation

Wayside crosses are one of several types of Christian cross erected during the medieval period, mostly from the 9th to 15th centuries AD. In addition to serving the function of reiterating and reinforcing the Christian faith amongst those who passed the cross and of reassuring the traveller, wayside crosses often fulfilled a role as waymarkers, especially in difficult and otherwise unmarked terrain. The crosses might be on regularly used routes linking ordinary settlements or on routes which might have a more specifically religious function, including providing access to religious sites for parishioners and funeral processions. Wayside crosses vary considerably in form and decoration but several regional types have been identified. The Cornish wayside crosses form one such group. The commonest type includes a round, or `wheel', head on the faces of which various forms of cross were carved. The design was sometimes supplemented with a relief figure of Christ. Less common forms include the `Latin' cross, where the cross-head itself is shaped within the arms of an unenclosed cross and, much rarer, the simple slab with a low-relief cross on both faces. Over 400 crosses of all types are recorded in Cornwall. Wayside crosses contribute significantly to our understanding of medieval routeways, settlement patterns and the development of sculptural traditions and their survival is somewhat differential because of periods of religious turbulence during the Reformation when many were subject to damage or partial destruction by iconoclasts. Despite having been moved slightly, the wayside cross 330m NNW of Higher Woodley survives well and its decorations are well preserved and crisply carved and it remains close to its original location marking the route to a church.

Details

The monument includes a wayside cross, situated at a cross roads called Tremore Cross on roads between the settlements of Ruthernbridge, Innis Downs, Tremore and Bodmin, and marking a route to Lanivet church. The cross survives as a decorated wheel-head and shaft set into a hedge. The cross stands to a height of 1m .The head is decorated with a an equal-armed cross with slightly extended arms in relief on both sides. Crisply carved beading surrounds the head and continues down the shaft of the cross. The cross was first illustrated by Blight and fully described by Langdon in 1896. It is believed to have been moved slightly from its original location, on an island in the centre of the crossroads, to its current location. The hedge in which it stands has been built up since 1956 - 8. It also currently marks a modern long distance footpath known as 'The Saints Way'.

Sources: HER:- PastScape Monument No:-431388

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

CO 204

Legacy System:

RSM - OCN

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.