The Gosforth Cross is a large stone Anglo-Saxon high cross in the churchyard at Gosforth in the English county of Cumbria, an area heavily settled by Vikings.
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Description
The Gosforth Cross has elaborate carvings which have been interpreted as representing characters and scenes from Norse mythology. These were first identified in 1888 by two amateur antiquarians who demonstrated that the cross showed scenes described in the Poetic Edda.[1] Those include images identified as:
- Loki bound with his wife Sigyn protecting him.
- The god Heimdallr holding his horn.
- The god Víðarr tearing the jaws of Fenrir.
- Thor's failed attempt to catch Jörmungandr, the Midgard Serpent.
The cross also has Christian symbolism, including a depiction of the crucifixion of Christ. The combination of Christian and Norse pagan symbolism on the cross may be evidence of the use of pagan stories to illustrate Christian teachings.[1]
The cross is 4.4 metres tall and made out of red sandstone. It is estimated to date from 920-950 and is still in fairly good condition. The church also has important hogback tombs, and what appears to be a fragment of another cross, showing the god Thor fishing.
Gallery
 Víðarr's battle with Fenrir at Ragnarök. |
 Engraving of Víðarr section of cross. |
 Engraving of cross showing Fenrir and Heimdallr. |
 Engraving of a stone panel, possibly part of a second cross, showing Thor fishing. |
Notes
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gosforth Cross |
- Bailey, Richard N. (1996). England's Earliest Sculptors. University of Toronto. ISBN 0-88844-905-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=6-Km_LLNce0C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false.
- Bailey, Richard N. Scandinavian Myth on Viking-period Stone Sculpture in England.
- Finnur Jónsson (1913). Goðafræði Norðmanna og Íslendinga eftir heimildum. Reykjavík: Hið íslenska bókmentafjelag.
External links
Coordinates: 54°25′10″N 3°25′54″W / 54.41934°N 3.43165°W
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