Cross base at the junction of Standish Green Lane, Standish Wood Lane and Beech Walk, 200m NNW of Strickland House Farm, Standish

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.

The cross base at Three Lane Ends survives well even if worn on the top surface. It is one of a group of four medieval crosses intended as waymarkers on the route between Wigan and Chorley. The crosses provide important evidence of the medieval route and serve to remind us of medieval travellers and the importance of religion in medieval life.

Details

The monument includes a cross base at Three Lane Ends in Standish. It stands on the west side of Beech Walk and is one of four known crosses which functioned as waymarkers on the medieval route from Wigan to Standish which continues towards Chorley. The cross was originally situated at SD55980999 where it stood on the west side of Standish Green Lane at the junction with the A5209. It was moved in order to widen the lane for a road to the housing which has been developed since World War II. The base, which is Listed Grade II, is made from a single block of local gritstone and measures 0.84m wide on the west side and 0.75m on the north side. It stands 0.14m above the ground. The socket hole measures 0.35m by 0.33m and is 0.25m deep. The stone has been set 1m from the edge of the lane and 0.5m from the surface of the house drive adjacent to it on the north side. The surface of this drive is excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath it is included.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 1 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:

25720

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Greater Manchester Sites and Monuments Record, (1994)

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