Sanduck Cross: a wayside cross on the north side of a minor road 45m south west of Sanduck Farm

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 having a more specifically religious function, including those providing access to religious sites for parishioners and funeral processions, or marking long-distance routes frequented on pilgrimages. Over 350 wayside crosses are known nationally, concentrated in south west England throughout Cornwall and on Dartmoor where they form the commonest type of stone cross. A small group also occurs on the North York Moors. Relatively few examples have been recorded elsewhere and these are generally confined to remote moorland locations. Outside Cornwall almost all wayside crosses take the form of a `Latin' cross, in which the cross-head itself is shaped within the projecting arms of an unenclosed cross. In Cornwall wayside crosses vary considerably in form and decoration. The commonest type includes a round, or `wheel', head on the faces of which various forms of cross or related designs were carved in relief or incised, the spaces between the cross arms possibly pierced. The design was sometimes supplemented with a relief figure of Christ and the shaft might bear decorative panels and motifs. Less common forms in Cornwall include the `Latin' cross and, much rarer, the simple slab with a low relief cross on both faces. Rare examples of wheel-head and slab-form crosses also occur within the North York Moors group. Most wayside crosses have either a simple socketed base or show no evidence for a separate base at all. Wayside crosses contribute significantly to our understanding of medieval religious customs and sculptural traditions and to our knowledge of medieval routeways and settlement patterns. All wayside crosses which survive as earth- fast monuments, except those which are extremely damaged and removed from their original locations, are considered worthy of protection.

Although not in situ, Sanduck Cross is a fine example of a relatively late medieval wayside cross, probably dating to the 15th century, well sited and well restored.

Details

The monument includes a well preserved late medieval wayside cross of moderately coarse-grained granite, set in a modern granite socket stone. The monument is sited under an old oak tree on the sloping verge of a minor road running between Lustleigh and North Bovey, on the west side of Sanduck Farm. It was found in the ruins of Sanduck Farm (since rebuilt) following a fire in 1901. It is also a Listed Building Grade II. All the edges of the shaft, head and arms have a chamfer 70mm-80mm wide. The arms are aligned approximately south west-north east. The north eastern arm is a modern replacement, well executed with a barely visible cement bond. The cross, which is set about 4m from the edge of the road, leans slightly to the south west, possibly as a result of disturbance by tree roots. The shaft, including the head of the cross, is 1.26m high. The shaft is widest at its base being 0.3m wide on the south east side, and tapers slightly under the arms where it is a maximum of 0.25m wide. The chamfer is stopped at the base of the shaft - the stop rises 0.15m up the shaft from the base. The width across the arms of the cross is 0.46m. Both arms extend 0.11m from the shaft and are very slightly splayed, with a maximum external depth of 0.225m. The head of the cross has a flat top and extends 0.14m above the arms. Against the arms the head has a width of 0.24m which splays slightly to the top where it is 0.26m. The south west and north east sides of the socket stone measure 1.08m, and the stone is 0.23m deep.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

24834

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Crossing, W, The Ancient Stone Crosses of Dartmoor, (1902), 160

End of official list entry

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