Anglo Saxon Preaching Cross, Minster Church of St Peter ad Vincula - Stoke, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, UK
N 53° 00.223 W 002° 10.916
30U E 554895 N 5872997
The ancient Anglo Saxon preaching cross is located in the churchyard of the Minster Church of St Peter ad Vincula on Glebe Street in Stoke.
Waymark Code: WM15WC7
Location: West Midlands, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/08/2022
Views: 3
The name "Stoke" comes from an Old English word meaning "a place", signifying a holy place.
A Saxon cross survives in the churchyard, suggesting that this was an ancient sacred site.
The first wooden Church was replaced in the year 805. Early 19th Century illustrations of Stoke Old Church show a stone-built structure which mostly dates from the 13th Century, with the addition of a 14th Century tower.
By the 1820's Stoke Church was no longer large enough to accommodate its growing congregation. In 1826 the foundations were laid for the present Church, to be finally consecrated in 1830.
Saxon Preaching Cross: (
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'The remaining shaft is the oldest man made structure in Stoke-on-Trent dating from 750-780 It is ornately decorated with Celtic patterns. These intricate designs remind us that the Saxon Church owed its foundation to Celtic missionaries such as St Aidan. The cut-out section shows it was re-used as a door lintel in the 11th century Saxon church.'
The cross is Grade 11 listed, the description by Historic England reads as follows;
'STOKE ON TRENT
SJ8645 GLEBE STREET 613-1/9/124 (South East side) 02/10/51 Cross fragment in St Peter's Churchyard (Formerly Listed as: GLEBE STREET Churchyard Cross)
GV II
Fragment of Anglo-Saxon cross. Stone. Identified by Charles Lynam and re-erected by him in mid C19. Tooled base and surrounding railings are mid C19, and the shaft itself, which is some 4 ft high, is enriched with interlace and key patterns. (Baynton V: Charles Lynan and his Work: University of Keele: 1980-).
Listing NGR: SJ8788845169'
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The cross is set on a plinth and the inscription on the plinth reads:
"This fragment of a pre-Norman cross
identified by Chas Lynam F.S.A. was
re-erected near to its original position
in the 25th year of the reign of
H.M. King George V by P. W. L. Adams F.S.A"