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<< Our Photo Pages >> Woodhorn Cross - Ancient Cross in England in Northumberland

Submitted by Anne T on Sunday, 23 September 2018  Page Views: 1920

Early Medieval (Dark Age)Site Name: Woodhorn Cross Alternative Name: St Mary's Church (Woodhorn); Woodhorn Church Museum
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 1.665 km away from the location you searched for.

County: Northumberland Type: Ancient Cross
Nearest Town: Ashington  Nearest Village: Woodhorn / Newbeggin by the Sea
Map Ref: NZ3014288845
Latitude: 55.192965N  Longitude: 1.528078W
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
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
4 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.
5 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
5

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Anne T visited on 16th Sep 2018 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Woodhorn Church Museum: This church is now deconsecrated and is a museum. It is only open on Bank Holidays and Heritage Days, such as ‘Doors Open Days’. We arrived just before 1pm and they had just arrived to open the church up. The Woodhorn Cross was easy to find, but asking where the other Norman stones recorded on a notice by the cross, plus the other stones featured on the Corpus, the Friends of the Church who were helping out told us they didn’t know where they were located, but gave us a leaflet about the church. We found other fragments incorporated into the fabric of the building, plus others under a table at the north side of the sanctuary, plus others under the altar! AS Corpus Woodhorn 02 and 03 appear to be in the main museum nearby.

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : Face a of the cross head of AS Corpus Woodhorn 01, described as: "There is a flat central roundel cleverly composed of a central motif of two intersecting loops which spin out into intersecting circles of interlaced strands. The upper arm has a split plait motif, in which the strands are bent into a V shape between the four end knots and the diagonal strand becomes an edge strand. On the right arm... (Vote or comment on this photo)
Ancient Cross in Northumberland

Barry Mead, Community Heritage Officer for Wansbeck District Council, has written "A Brief History of the Church and Graveyard" for St. Mary's Church, Woodhorn. This tells us "Woodhorn Church is said to be one of the oldest on the Northumbrian coast, dating back at least 1200 years. However, the earliest evidence which can be dated with some certainty belongs to the early 11th century, in the form of 2 late Saxon windows within the church itself." More information can be found on Pastscape Monument No. 527372 and Historic England List ID 1304471, which both date the nave to pre-Conquest, the north aisle to early 12th century and the south aisle to mid-12th century.

The church today is now deconsecrated and is used as an exhibition space and museum. It is only open on Heritage Days (such as Doors Open Days) and Bank Holidays - please check before visiting.

The Corpus of Anglo Saxon Stone Sculpture records a total of four fragments, commencing with Woodhorn 01 (the Woodhorn Cross). This is an incomplete cross shaft in two fragments and an incomplete cross head, dating to the mid-tenth to mid-eleventh century. The Corpus tells us "for some years fragments b and c (the cross shaft) preserved on a screen dividing nave from tower; a (cross-head) built into inside wall of porch until 1976).

When we visited, we were only able to find AS Corpus Woodhorn 01 and 04, the latter of which was hidden under a table at the northern side of the sanctuary. The Friends of St Mary's helping out on the day did not know where the other fragments were currently located, although we understand they may be in Woodhorn Museum and Archive nearby.

There are a number of other architectural fragments built into the fabric of the building which are really interesting.

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Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : The carving at the top of the lower portion (AS Corpus Woodhorn 01, fragment c). Description is: "surrounded by a fine roll moulding are a pair of affronted griffins. Their heads are bent back over their bodies. The back leg with its three-toed foot extends stiffly over the body of the other. Their front legs appear to form a joining angular loop. Plume extensions cross over and under their bodie... (Vote or comment on this photo)

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : A blocked up Saxon window, created when the original south wall of the church was converted into three to make a south aisle. Above the now blocked window head is a carved stone, which has what looks suspiciously like rock art on it! Couldn't find out anything more about this (yet). As you walk through the south door into the church museum, look directly up and slightly to your right, to find t... (Vote or comment on this photo)

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : This cross incised grave marker (?) is high up on the wall (of the western inside wall of the tower, if I've read my notes correctly). (Vote or comment on this photo)

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : The reverse side of the stone we took to be AS Corpus Woodhorn 04. This face, with its carved cross, was facing the north wall of the sanctuary, and we were given permission to drop it down to photograph this side. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : This stone, propped under a table against the north wall of the sanctuary, fits the size and dimensions of AS Corpus Woodhorn 04, a cross head or grave marker dating to the second half of the eleventh century. The Corpus photographs show the stone carved with a cross on both sides, but this appears to have a cross on one side only. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : This fragment of shaped stone is located immediately to the right (east) of AS Corpus Woodhorn 04, under a table against the north wall of the sanctuary. With the permission of the Friends helping out on this Heritage Open Day, we moved the table to photograph the stones. The other side of the stone appears to be uncarved (or is very worn).

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : Another fragment of medieval stone embedded in the fabric of the nave. This one has a faint chevron pattern. We saw a similar one at St Bartholomew's in Whittingham yesterday (23rd Sept 2018) which was dated to the Norman period.

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : The fabric of St Mary's has a number of medieval fragments built into it, and we had to look carefully for them. This one is partly hidden behind the modern boiler, on the west side of the doorway into the tower (nave side). It reminds me very much of a fragment embedded in the walls of Hexham Abbey.

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : This is side d of fragment a of the Woodhorn Cross (see AS Corpus Woodhorn 01), comprising two intertwinded creatures set in roll edge moulding. "Their bodies are confronted with front legs crossed and back legs crouched. Their heads cross so that the heads face in opposite directions. They have canine heads with pointed ears. The figure on the right has a tongue extension, which disappears behind...

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : This is side d of the upper part of the shaft (fragment b of AS Corpus Woodhorn 01), which is described as having possibly up to three separate panels, the first including plant scroll with twisted stems; the second ribbon animals and the third an eight-cord plait.

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : The right hand sides of the cross head and the upper portion of the shaft (recorded as AS Corpus Woodhorn 01, fragments a and b). This side of the cross head is described as being uncarved; this part of the shaft is "Mostly taken up by a pattern of interlace which must have been thirteen registers of simple pattern E, surrounded by a fine roll moulding. At the base the beginning of what seems to ...

Woodhorn Cross
Woodhorn Cross submitted by Anne T : The Woodhorn Cross, in three fragments, is displayed against the south wall of the chancel. It is recorded in the Corpus of Anglo Saxon Stone Sculpture, Woodhorn 01.

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