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<< Text Pages >> St Botolph (Helpston) - Ancient Cross in England in Cambridgeshire

Submitted by TimPrevett on Sunday, 20 May 2007  Page Views: 4488

Early Medieval (Dark Age)Site Name: St Botolph (Helpston)
Country: England County: Cambridgeshire Type: Ancient Cross
 Nearest Village: Helpston
Map Ref: TF12200552
Latitude: 52.635839N  Longitude: 0.343466W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
 no data Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
 no data Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
 no data Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
 4
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bscwilde visited on 22nd Apr 2024 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5

Ancient Cross in Cambridgeshire

Several fragments of cross in St Botolph's, Helpston.
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St Botolph (Helpston)
St Botolph (Helpston) submitted by bscwilde : Smaller 'wheel', simpler and in a flat plane but also suggestive of five arms, almost petal-like, rather than in a cruciform alignment. (Vote or comment on this photo)

St Botolph (Helpston)
St Botolph (Helpston) submitted by bscwilde : 'Head' comprising two largish volutes, small feet and narrow, the arms more widely spread; the whole resembling nothing so much as an owl. (Vote or comment on this photo)

St Botolph (Helpston)
St Botolph (Helpston) submitted by bscwilde : Five arms of equal length, akin to 'la croix pattée' but in the form of a somewhat anthropomorphic star shape enclosing a central orb or circle. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Do not use the above information on other web sites or publications without permission of the contributor.

Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
TF1205 : St.Botolph's church by Richard Croft
by Richard Croft
©2009(licence)
TF1205 : St.Botolph, Helpston: late June 2016 by Basher Eyre
by Basher Eyre
©2016(licence)
TF1205 : John Clare's grave by Tiger
by Tiger
©2019(licence)
TF1205 : The grave of John Clare, Helpston by Jonathan Thacker
by Jonathan Thacker
©2021(licence)
TF1205 : St Botolph's, Helpston by Ben Keating
by Ben Keating
©2012(licence)

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"St Botolph (Helpston)" | Login/Create an Account | 2 News and Comments
  
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Re: St Botolph (Helpston) by bscwilde on Monday, 22 April 2024
(User Info | Send a Message)
Not so sure that these fragments are part of an ancient cross. Rotating the image 80° anticlockwise (as I did to visualise, say, a Celtic or Saxon cross with nimbus / ring emergent from a stele with the image graven into the top), there are clearly five arms of equal length, akin to 'la croix pattée' but in the form of a somewhat anthropomorphic star shape enclosing a central orb or circle.

The reverse face is similar and aligned at the same rotation. Here the image is similar but not identical: the 'head' comprises two largish volutes, the feet small and narrow, the arms more widely spread; the whole resembling nothing so much as an owl. My guess is that the carved stone fragments predate the 13th century St Botolph's by some 500 years or possibly earlier. Anglo Saxon? Danish? There is little to go on but speculation.

A second, smaller 'wheel' is displayed, though it does not appear to be part of the same stone being of a different constitution and hue- therefore unlikely to be part of the same stele as these are not known to be assembled from different materials. The form is simpler and in a flat plane but also suggestive of five arms, almost petal-like, rather than in a cruciform alignment. I did not photograph the reverse as I could make out no detail whatsoever.

Photographs:
1. Fragment at St Botolph's, Helpston - 5-armed cross (obverse)

2. Fragment at St Botolph's, Helpston - 5-armed cross (reverse)

3. Fragment at St Botolph's, Helpston - 5-petal wheel (obverse)


Anyone with greater knowledge of such things is invited to make comment.
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: St Botolph (Helpston) by Andy B on Monday, 22 April 2024
    (User Info | Send a Message)
    Hello, thanks very much for your photos and thoughts on this site, interesting!
    [ Reply to This ]

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