The Corpus: Hexham 39

Volume I: County Durham and Northumberland

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Current Display: Hexham 39, Northumberland

Overview

Object type: Fragment of animal frieze(?) [1]

Measurements: H. 20.2 cm (8 in); W. 22.3 cm (8.75 in); D. Built in

Stone type: Coarse-grained, massive yellow sandstone

Plate numbers in printed volume: Pl. 185.1027

Corpus volume reference: Vol 1 p. 191-192

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Present Location

Built into west wall of modern nave of abbey, inside

Evidence for Discovery

Found during reconstruction of 1899-1908

Church Dedication

St Andrew

Present Condition

Incomplete and damaged

Description

Only part of one face survives. A flat-band moulding encloses a small coiled serpent whose head abuts on to a vertical feature.

Discussion

So little remains of this fragment that it is impossible to discuss it in a meaningful way. The style of cutting appears to put this fragment into the same sequence as 36-8, despite slight differences of dimension (Cramp 1974, 121).

Date

Second half of eighth to second half of ninth century

References

Savage and Hodges 1907, 41, pl. 40E; Hodges and Gibson 1919, 65; Collingwood 1925, 70, fig. 4L; Collingwood 1927, 28, fig. 34L; Rivoira 1933, 156, fig. 566; Fyson 1951-6, 242, fig. on 241; Taylor and Taylor 1961, 118; Fisher 1962, 70; Taylor and Taylor 1965, 303; Cramp 1974, 121, 177, pl. 10A

Endnotes

1. The following are general references to the Hexham stones: (—) 1855-7a, 45-6; Rowe 1877, 62-3; Allen 1889, 230; Bailey 1980, 79, 81, 83.