| Maen Achwyfan Cross | |
|---|---|
| Native name Welsh: Maen Achwyfan | |
.jpg.webp) "the tallest Wheel-Cross in Britain" | |
| Type | Cross |
| Location | Whitford, Flintshire |
| Coordinates | 53°17′55″N 3°18′31″W / 53.2986°N 3.30853°W |
| Built | 10th/11th century |
| Governing body | Cadw |
| Official name | Maen Achwyfan |
| Reference no. | FL005 |
  Location of Maen Achwyfan Cross in Flintshire | |
Maen Achwyfan Cross (Welsh: Maen Achwyfan, Croes Maen Achwyfan), located near the village of Whitford, Flintshire, Wales, is a high cross dating from the late 10th or early 11th century. Standing 3.4 metres (11 ft) high, it is the tallest wheel cross in Britain, and a Scheduled monument.
History and description
Cadw translates Maen Achwyfan as "the stone of [Saint] Cwyfan" and dates the cross to the early Medieval or Medieval periods.[1] Edward Hubbard, in his Clwyd Pevsner, suggests a build date of the late 10th or early 11th century.[2] It stands 3.4 m high and is carved from a single block of stone.[3] Its height makes it the "tallest wheel cross in Britain".[1] Its wheel cross head has bosses on both sides.[2] The shaft is decorated with knotwork and with images of men and animals. Hubbard recorded in 2003 that the figurative images were "now barely discernible".[2] Cadw notes the Viking influence on the design, the cross being carved at a time when Viking raids were common along the North Wales coastline.[3]
The cross stands in a field to the north of the village of Whitford. It is a Scheduled monument.[4]
See also
References
- 1 2 Cadw. "Maen Achwyfan (FL005)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
- 1 2 3 Hubbard 2003, p. 456.
- 1 2 "Maen Achwyfan Cross". cadw.gov.wales. Cadw. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
- ↑ "Maen Achwyfan Cross (94449)". Coflein. RCAHMW. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
Sources
- Hubbard, Edward (2003). Clwyd: Denbighshire and Flintshire. The Buildings of Wales. New Haven, US and London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-09627-9. OCLC 909280390.
External links
- Coflein site with images of the cross
- Articles on the cross by Prof. Howard Williams – The Offa's Dyke Collaboratory
