The Corpus: Langford 02

Volume 4: South-East England

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Current Display: Langford 02, Oxfordshire

Overview

Object type: Crucifixion [1]

Measurements: H. 183 cm (72 in) (W. 216 cm (85 in); D. Built in

Stone type: Pale yellowish-brown, medium- to coarse-grained, shelly, oolitic limestone, with near planar bedding and some calcite veinlets; Combe Down Oolite, Great Oolite Formation of Bath area, Great Oolite Group, Middle Jurassic

Plate numbers in printed volume: Ills. 294-295

Corpus volume reference: Vol 4 p. 213-214

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Present Location

Ex situ, built externally into east wall of south porch

Evidence for Discovery

See Langford no. 1.

Church Dedication

St Matthew

Present Condition

Largely complete, but surfaces worn

Description

It is composed of four joined elements. The head and lower limb of the cross are made separately, and set with a space between them. Into this gap are inserted tenons on the inner ends of the horizontal arms, which meet on the vertical axis.

The high-relief, frontally-placed, robed figure is intact except for the head. The arms are outstretched at right angles to the body. Each hand rests palm outwards on a vertical bar of triangular section, and is well modelled and deeply undercut. The hands protrude from the hollowed ends of the expanding sleeves of the robe. This has a rounded neck and falls to the ankles. It is tied at the waist with a knotted belt, the long expanding ends of which are cut off square at knee level. There is close vertical ribbing beside the legs. The feet protrude from the robe but are heavily damaged.

Discussion

As with Langford no. 1, the piece is clearly ex situ, as it is built into the same thirteenth-century fabric. The pieces have, however, been reconstructed in the correct order.

Date

Eleventh century

References

( --- ) 1886, 13 - 15, pl. B; Allen 1889, 198; ( --- ) 1899, 51 - 2, pl. on 51; Gatty 1900, 73; Prior and Gardner 1912, 132, fig. 112; MÉle 1928, 256; Clapham 1930, 138, pl. 61; Cottrill 1931, 53, appendix; Rivoira 1933, ii, 208; Salzman 1939, 369, 371; Rice 1947, 14; Saxl and Wittkower 1948, 27, pl. 4; Kendrick 1949, 48, 51 - 2; Clapham 1951, 193 - 4, pls. III - IV; Gardner 1951, 45, fig. 70; Rice 1952, 101 - 6, 152, pl. 17; Fisher 1959, 89; Rice 1960, 200 - 1, pl. IIIB; Quirk 1961, 29; Fisher 1962, 393, 231, pl. 114; Pocknee 1962, 43; Taylor 1962b, 19; MacKay 1963, 89; Taylor and Taylor 1965 - 78, i, 74 - 5, 367, 372, ii, 630, iii, 1056; Taylor and Taylor 1966, 6, 13, 22; Zarnecki 1966, 89, pl. 1a; Gem 1973, ii, 496 - 7; Sherwood and Pevsner 1974, 348, 681, pl. 9; Coatsworth 1979, i, 151 - 73, 281, ii, 35, pl. 61; Tweddle 1986b, i, 73 - 4, 189 - 208, ii, 398 - 9, iii, pl. 56a; Coatsworth 1988, 173 - 5, 190; Raw 1990, 92, 210

D.T.

Endnotes