Reasons for Designation
High crosses, frequently heavily decorated, were erected in a variety of
locations in the eighth, ninth and tenth centuries AD. They are found
throughout northern England with a few examples further south. Surviving
examples are of carved stone but it is known that decorated timber crosses
were also used for similar purposes and some stone crosses display evidence of
carpentry techniques in their creation and adornment, attesting to this
tradition. High crosses have shafts supporting carved cross heads which may be
either free-armed or infilled with a 'wheel' or disc. They may be set within
dressed or rough stone bases called socles. The cross heads were frequently
small, the broad cross shaft being the main feature of the cross.
High crosses served a variety of functions, some being associated with
established churches and monasteries and playing a role in religious services,
some acting as cenotaphs or marking burial places, and others marking routes
or boundaries and acting as meeting places for local communities. Decoration
of high crosses divides into four main types: plant scrolls, plaiting and
interlace, birds and animals and, lastly, figural representation which is the
rarest category and often takes the form of religious iconography. The carved
ornamentation was often painted in a variety of colours though traces of these
pigments now survive only rarely. The earliest high crosses were created and
erected by the native population, probably under the direction of the Church,
but later examples were often commissioned by secular patrons and reflect the
art styles and mythology of Viking settlers.
Several distinct regional groupings and types of high cross have been
identified, some being the product of single schools of craftsmen. There are
fewer than 50 high crosses surviving in England and this is likely to
represent only a small proportion of those originally erected. Some were
defaced or destroyed during bouts of iconoclasm during the 16th and 17th
centuries. Others fell out of use and were taken down and reused in new
building works. They provide important insights into art traditions and
changing art styles during the early medieval period, into religious beliefs
during the same era and into the impact of the Scandinavian settlement of the
north of England. All well-preserved examples are identified as nationally
important.
Details
The monument includes the upper part of a decorated cross shaft and head of a
late 10th/early 11th century Anglo-Scandinavian cross. It is constructed of
red sandstone and is set in a sandstone base of a later date than the cross
but nevertheless thought to be of pre-Conquest date. The cross shaft measures
45cm high, is rectangular in cross section, and tapers towards the top where
its maximum dimensions are 30.5cm by 17.8cm. It is decorated on all sides with
spiral-scroll and stopped-plait carvings. The cross head is of the ring-head
or debased wheel-head type with lateral arms, and measures 51cm by 45.7cm. Its
western face is decorated with a flat boss carrying an incised linear
equal-armed cross; this is surrounded by a mixture of spiral-scroll and
stopped-plait carving. The east face has an encircled boss surrounded by
spiral-scroll and stopped-plait. Both the north and south ends of the cross
head are incised with a St Andrew's cross.
The cross originally stood in a churchyard on the banks of the River Eden
where the original Addingham village was sited. In 1350 the river changed its
course and washed away much of the village. Burials continued at the site of
the original church for some time until floods once again swept away the new
graves. Building of the present church of St Michael is thought to have
commenced during the 12th or 13th centuries. The cross is first recorded at
its present site in 1840.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
23770
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals
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 Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
