1. Education
About.com
Medieval History

Discuss in my forum

The Ruthwell Cross

By , About.com Guide

See More About:
The Ruthwell Cross is an 18-foot-tall, free-standing stone carving that depicts scenes from the bible, decorative vine work, and 18 verses from the Old English poem The Dream of the Rood, in Anglo-Saxon runes and Latin lettering. It is a "preaching cross," most likely designed to either convert pagans to Christianity or to instruct Christians from a pagan background.
The Ruthwell Cross is a powerful religious symbol, a marvelous work of Anglo-Saxon art, and a significant source of literary and historical evidence.

Origins of the Ruthwell Cross:

The date of the cross's construction has been much debated and remains uncertain to this day. Taking into account the linguistic features, artistic design, and the fact that it is clearly an Anglian product in what was once a Celtic region, historians generally concur that it was produced sometime after about 650, and probably later.

Some scholars believe the Ruthwell Cross was produced after the Synod of Whitby in the 660s. One theory maintains it was constructed half a century later as a direct result of Bede and Ceolfrith's mission to King Nechtan in 710 (see Hilda and Caedmon: The Dream of the Rood by Julia Bolton Holloway).

History of the Ruthwell Cross:

The cross stood in Ruthwell, in the county of Dumfriesshire, Dumfries and Galloway council area, Scotland, for centuries. A community grew up around it, a church was established, and the cross was incorporated into the church grounds. Then, in 1640, after Scotland had become a Protestant nation, the Church of Scotland General Assembly passed an Act to demolish "Idolatrous Monuments," like crosses and images of Jesus and the saints. The Ruthwell Cross suffered as a result of this act.

The General Assembly ordered the destruction of the Ruthwell Cross. It was cast down, broken into pieces and scattered throughout the churchyard. It remained in this sad state until 1799, when Rev. Dr. Henry Duncan realized its historical significance and decided to piece it together again. This took 24 years, and when he was finished, much of the cross had worn down from weather and neglect, and some of it seemed deliberately defaced. The crossbeam was missing and had to be fabricated.
The reconstructed cross stood in the garden until 1887, when it was declared an ancient monument and protected under the Ancient Monuments Protection Act of 1882. It was brought into the church, where a special apse was constructed to store it. The Ruthwell Cross can be seen there to this day.

The Inscriptions:

The purpose of the cross as a teaching and preaching tool is finely served by the excellent carving of biblical scenes. More extraordinary still is The Dream of the Rood in Anglo-Saxon runes, which may have been added a century or so after the initial construction of the cross. The runes have been the subject of intense study, and are particularly interesting because they contain six symbols indicating guttural sounds, whereas the Scandinavians employed only one or two.

Sites of Interest:

©2012 About.com. All rights reserved.

A part of The New York Times Company.