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Anne T visited on 4th Jun 2015 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Anglo Saxon Cross Fragments, St. Margaret's Church, Hornby: From Gressingham, we continued east along the twisty-turny Back Lane, over the narrow bridge over the River Lune, to its junction with the A683. Turning right, we were almost immediately in Hornby. St. Margaret’s sits on the left hand side of the road, before the main road takes a right hand turn. There is ample parking on the right hand side of the road opposite the church which is distinctive with its octagonal tower. Opening the gate from Main Street, you fall into the porch of the church, which is very dark. Inside, the church appears very modern and (to me) without personality, although there is evidence of much older structures such as the traces of old roof lines in the interior west wall; Pastscape records it as having building having started in 1514, with the nave being rebuilt in 1817 with clerestorey being added in 1889. There was no church guide, just one board with an A4 sheet of notes. This told us that: “Under the tower are two fragments of 9th century crosses, one showing the five loaves and two fishes; this is unique in England, though there are two in Ireland. They both came from the Priory ...”, although the Pastscape record says they are 8th to 9th century and that both fragments had been reused in a 19th century barn wall at Priory Farm before coming to the St. Margaret’s. The church notes continued: “The churchyard contains a huge cross base, which may be pre-Conquest or Norman. The original cross could have been twelve feet high. Its presence is something of a mystery.” The Anglo Saxon Cross Fragment with the carving of the five loaves and two fishes was impressive, and definitely worth stopping to see. Alongside it, to the right, was a much smaller fragment with chevrons. The churchyard is beautifully kept, with well mown grass and shrubs being clipped into amazing shapes and kept low to the ground. The cross base is huge in comparison to others that I’ve seen – I had to climb on top of a stone to photograph the top, which has a slot for a cross to go into on top.

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