<< Our Photo Pages >> St Ebba's Chapel - Ancient Cross in England in Northumberland
Submitted by Anne T on Tuesday, 22 May 2018 Page Views: 3012
Early Medieval (Dark Age)Site Name: St Ebba's Chapel Alternative Name: Ebb's Sneuk; Ebb's NookCountry: England County: Northumberland Type: Ancient Cross
Nearest Town: Seahouses Nearest Village: Beadnell
Map Ref: NU2396428707
Latitude: 55.551478N Longitude: 1.621719W
Condition:
| 5 | Perfect |
| 4 | Almost Perfect |
| 3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
| 2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
| 1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
| 0 | No data. |
| -1 | Completely destroyed |
| 5 | Superb |
| 4 | Good |
| 3 | Ordinary |
| 2 | Not Good |
| 1 | Awful |
| 0 | No data. |
| 5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
| 4 | Short walk on a footpath |
| 3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
| 2 | A long walk |
| 1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
| 0 | No data. |
| 5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
| 4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
| 3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
| 2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
| 1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
| 0 | no data |
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Anne T visited on 20th May 2018 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 4 Access: 4 St Ebba's Chapel/Early Christian Monastery site: I have long wanted to come to this spot, ever since seeing the Time Team Excavation of this in July 2013. Whilst the rest of Northumberland had a hot day with blue, cloudless skies, this part of the coast was murky. Still, this was a very enigmatic place.
We’d stopped off at a café/restaurant in Beadnell village for refreshments before arriving here, and I’d looked at their guide book “Limekilns and Lobsterpots” before arriving, which intrigued me further.
A lonely spot, largely surrounded by sea on a narrow promontory. I wish I’d been able to see the excavations, but found the Wessex Archaeology report.
This early Christian site may date back as far as the time of St. Augustine's mission to re-establish Christianity in Britain in AD 597. Historic England tells us that "Preconquest monastic sites are rare nationally and fewer than 100 sites have been recognised from documentary sources. The locations of less than half of these have been confirmed ... All examples exhibiting survival of archaeological remains will be identified as nationally important. The monastic site and later chapel at St Ebb's Nook are well preserved. The monastic site is one of a number situated on promontories or island locations in Northumbria."
Documented as both Historic England List ID 1008563 and Pastscape Monument No. 8230. Time Team/Wessex Archaeology also undertook an excavation, and their September 2013 report can be accessed via St Ebba's Chapel, Beadnell, Northumberland Archaeological Evaluation Report and Assessment of Results. From memory of the episode, the site was brought to archaeologists attention because human bones were found protruding from the footpath.
The chapel and promontory were first looked at by Hodgson-Hinde in 1853. AT the time, a rectangular rubble wall chapel composed of nave and chancel was discovered, with a date around the 12th century. Pastscape adds: "The monastic settlement has for over a century been associated with St AEbba, the step-daughter of the king of Northumbria AEthelfrith; though there is no absolute proof of association it is thought that an early Christian origin for the earthworks at St Ebb's Nook is not inconsistent with the fact that St AEbba was a devoted Christian who is known to have founded other monasteries in Northumberland and it is known that Beadnell was tenurially linked to the Anglian royal seat at Bamburgh."
The promontory looks and feels just like where an early Christian hermit or small monastery would be located. The size of the chapel is small. The turf covered foundations form a rectangle in the landscape; stepping inside these, the remains of a low wall can still be seen on its northern side.
Wessex Archaoelogy notes tell us that the area was used for burials until the 19th century, and the area of the east of the chapel appeared to contain almost exclusively the remains of foetuses/neonates from the 16th or early 17th century. They also note that around the chapel is a range of earthwork features, some of which are considered to predate the chapel and provide evidence for an earlier monastic site.
Just north of the chapel ruins, at NU 2401 2874, is a medieval lime kiln, which was partly exposed by storms in the 1980s. From the top of the promontory, we were unable to locate this, although it might be possible to see it from the rocks below.
This is certainly an enigmatic spot, near to the Bronze Age cist burials at Bentall (see nearby sites below).
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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
319m NW 309° Benthall Round Cairn* Cairn (NU2371528908)
1.5km NW 321° Beadnell Caravan Park Rock Art (NU2300029900)
2.6km WSW 243° Long Nanny* Standing Stone (Menhir) (NU21632748)
3.4km SW 231° Tughall Chapel* Ancient Cross (NU2132026540)
4.1km NW 325° North Sunderland Cists* Cist (NU21603202)
4.1km NW 315° North Sunderland (Seahouses) Rock Art (NU2100031600)
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7.2km WSW 244° St Maurice's Well (Ellingham)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NU17452553)
7.6km NNW 344° St. Cuthbert's Well (Farne Islands)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NU21783599)
7.6km WSW 248° Ellingham a & d Rock Art (NU1691025790)
7.7km WSW 248° Ellingham b & c Rock Art (NU1686025750)
8.0km NW 318° Bamburgh Barrow 2* Round Barrow(s) (NU18633464)
8.0km W 278° Bradford Kaims Ancient Mine, Quarry or other Industry (NU16022980)
8.0km NW 317° Bamburgh Barrow 1* Round Barrow(s) (NU1841634486)
8.4km NW 316° Leper's Well (Bamburgh)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NU18053475)
8.4km NW 319° Bamburgh Castle* Sculptured Stone (NU1837335053)
8.6km NW 317° St Aidan's Well (Bamburgh)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NU1803234914)
8.7km NW 316° St Aidan's Church (Bamburgh)* Early Christian Sculptured Stone (NU1784334964)
8.8km W 281° St Hilda's Church (Lucker)* Ancient Cross (NU15303033)
10.2km WNW 301° Spindlestone Hill Fort* Hillfort (NU152339)
10.6km W 264° Isabella's Mount Camp Hillfort (NU13372757)
10.7km WSW 251° Wandylaw G Rock Art (NU1380125116)
10.8km WSW 251° Wandylaw B Rock Art (NU1379525109)
10.8km WSW 251° Wandylaw C* Rock Art (NU1381225059)
10.8km WSW 251° Wandylaw D Rock Art (NU1379325112)
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