Scheduled Monument: Cross In The Churchyard Of The Church Of St James (1017842)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Cross in the churchyard of the Church of St James PARISH: GAWSWORTH DISTRICT: MACCLESFIELD COUNTY: CHESHIRE NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 30365 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SJ89016967 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a churchyard cross standing 3m south east of the south porch of the Church of St James. The base and a section of the shaft are set on three steps. The first step is flush with the ground level and measures 3m square. The second step is of dressed sandstone blocks and measures 2.35m square and stands 0.28m high. The third step, also of dressed stones, measures 1.75m square and is 0.3m high. The block base is of finely carved sandstone and measures 1.05m square and 0.75m high. The base is square rising to octagonal and there are grotesque beasts at each shoulder. The shaft is octagonal and a section 0.85m in length survives. The cross dates from the 15th century and is Listed Grade II. Set on the top of the shaft and secured with iron bands is a modern wooden cross. Gravestones which have been erected or laid flat on the west and east sides of the cross base are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath is included. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE A standing cross is a free standing upright structure, usually of stone, mostly erected during the medieval period (mid 10th to mid 16th centuries AD). Standing crosses served a variety of functions. In churchyards they served as stations for outdoor processions, particularly in the observance of Palm Sunday. Elsewhere, standing crosses were used within settlements as places for preaching, public proclamation and penance, as well as defining rights of sanctuary. Standing crosses were also employed to mark boundaries between parishes, property, or settlements. A few crosses were erected to commemorate battles. Some crosses were linked to particular saints, whose support and protection their presence would have helped to invoke. Crosses in market places may have helped to validate transactions. After the Reformation, some crosses continued in use as foci for municipal or borough ceremonies, for example as places for official proclamations and announcements; some were the scenes of games or recreational activity. Standing crosses were distributed throughout England and are thought to have numbered in excess of 12,000. However, their survival since the Reformation has been variable, being much affected by local conditions, attitudes and religious sentiment. In particular, many cross-heads were destroyed by iconoclasts during the 16th and 17th centuries. Less than 2,000 medieval standing crosses, with or without cross-heads, are now thought to exist. The oldest and most basic form of standing cross is the monolith, a stone shaft often set directly in the ground without a base. The most common form is the stepped cross, in which the shaft is set in a socket stone and raised upon a flight of steps; this type of cross remained current from the 11th to 12th centuries until after the Reformation. Where the cross-head survives it may take a variety of forms, from a lantern-like structure to a crucifix; the more elaborate examples date from the 15th century. Much less common than stepped crosses are spire-shaped crosses, often composed of three or four receding stages with elaborate architectural decoration and/or sculptured figures; the most famous of these include the Eleanor crosses, erected by Edward I at the stopping places of the funeral cortege of his wife, who died in 1290. Also uncommon are the preaching crosses which were built in public places from the 13th century, typically in the cemeteries of religious communities and cathedrals, market places and wide thoroughfares; they include a stepped base, buttresses supporting a vaulted canopy, in turn carrying either a shaft and head or a pinnacled spire. Standing crosses contribute significantly to our understanding of medieval customs, both secular and religious, and to our knowledge of medieval parishes and settlement patterns. All crosses which survive as standing monuments, especially those which stand in or near their original location, are considered worthy of protection. The churchyard cross at Gawsworth is a very fine piece of late medieval carving. It survives well despite the loss of the cross head and part of the shaft. It is in its original location on the south side of the church. MONUMENT INCLUDED IN THE SCHEDULE ON 29th January 1998