<< Our Photo Pages >> Shepherd's Cross - Standing Stone (Menhir) in England in Staffordshire

Submitted by TimPrevett on Thursday, 03 August 2006  Page Views: 11096

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Shepherd's Cross Alternative Name: Butter Cross
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 2.228 km away from the location you searched for.
County: Staffordshire Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
Nearest Town: Biddulph
Map Ref: SJ89626042
Latitude: 53.140826N  Longitude: 2.156626W
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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GeorgieCollins visited on 25th Apr 2015 - their rating: Amb: 4 Access: 3 I'd advise visitors to park in the Talbot pub's carpark, it's a short walk (uphill, no footpath) from here to the site (which is recessed from the road). You can also park further down the hill in the Biddulph Country Park carpark (there's a path almost all the way to the pub from here). I can recommend the Talbot for post-walk refreshments - good food, good ales, nice fire.

BrownEdger visited on 9th Jun 2011 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4



Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Ambience: 4

Shepherd's Cross
Shepherd's Cross submitted by TimPrevett : Viewed from across the road. The west Staffordshire / east Cheshire border runs along the ridge to rear left. See main entry for details - click on blue text to left of picture. (Vote or comment on this photo)
A possible Christianised Standing Stone. NMR lists it as a 14th Century Wayside Cross, yet Staffordshire Past Track describes it as a Cross shaped from a Standing Stone. Click 'more' for further details.

A photo on the NMR and an 1847 sepia picture on the Past Track website clearly identify this as the same monument.

A visit in person clearly lends credence that this could well have been a standing stone. It is a very crudely carved cross, sitting in an enclosure on the west side of the road from Biddulph Grange Garden (a National Trust property) in the direction of the Bridestones.

Opposite are two (dry) troughs, with a large raised enclosure behind them (now covered by undergrowth). Was there a well here, too?

In the field to the east also stands a stone, but its nature is uncertain. Appears to be adjacent a hollow way, so perhaps serving as a waymarker for drove / livestock routes (in keeping with this monument's name), as well as nearby names such as "Fold Lane".

Parking is difficult - this is situated on a bend at the brough of a hill, so probably best to find somewhere else to park, and then carefully walk to visit this feature.

Note: This discovery of a likely Christianised standing stone comes during preparation for the Prehistoric Staffordshire talks in September.
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Shepherd's Cross
Shepherd's Cross submitted by TimPrevett : As much a view of the rear of the stone as I could get without getting even more stung by nettles in my shorts! See main entry for details - click on blue text to left of picture. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Shepherd's Cross
Shepherd's Cross submitted by TimPrevett : Looking from the shoulder of the cross, to the troughs across the road. See main entry for details - click on blue text to left of picture. (2 comments - Vote or comment on this photo)

Shepherd's Cross
Shepherd's Cross submitted by TimPrevett : The standing stone cum cross also has had a life as a gate post, it seems. See main entry for details - click on blue text to left of picture. (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Shepherd's Cross
Shepherd's Cross submitted by PaulM : A roadside cross located to the north of Biddulph at SJ897605. Nearby is the National Trust property of Biddulph Grange which contains many megalithically-inspired pieces of landscaping. The tunnels on the site are very similar to the inside of chambered tombs. (Vote or comment on this photo)

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Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
SJ8960 : Old Wayside Cross by Overton Road, Biddulph parish by Milestone Society
by Milestone Society
©2019(licence)
SJ8960 : Shepherd's Cross by Neil Lewin
by Neil Lewin
©2006(licence)
SJ8960 : A pair of dry troughs by Neil Lewin
by Neil Lewin
©2006(licence)
SJ8960 : Mast near Over Hall Farm by Colin Pyle
by Colin Pyle
©2011(licence)
SJ8960 : Looking across to Biddulph Old Hall by Jonathan Kington
by Jonathan Kington
©2010(licence)

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
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"Shepherd's Cross" | Login/Create an Account | 3 News and Comments
  
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Re: Shepherd's Cross by ancientgeo on Tuesday, 16 March 2021
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visited on 12th March 2021. The slots cut in the front face are interesting - they look very much like those used by workers to split stones, either by plug and feather or wedges. It would appear that this process has been abandoned and the stone has been remodelled as a cross. The dressing of the cross face has removed the greater part of the slots leaving just a trace. However, this does not preclude the possibility that this was once a standing stone.
Note- the bend in the road, slight hill and stone walls combine to make visibility very poor for drivers of vehicles - take care.
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Re: Shepherd's Cross by BiddulphMuseum on Wednesday, 02 May 2012
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Shepherd's Cross is also known as the Butter Cross as butter used to be sold there around 80 to 100 years ago.

The two troughs opposite were used by horses for water.
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Re: Shepherd's Cross by coldrum on Wednesday, 31 March 2010
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