The Corpus: Wath 04

Volume 6: Northern Yorkshire

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Current Display: Wath 04, Yorkshire North Riding

Overview

Object type: Shaft fragment [1]

Measurements: H. 32 cm (12.6 in) W. 49 cm (19.3 in) D. Built in

Stone type: Fine micaceous deltaic sandstone; colour masked by limewash but apparently very pale brown (10YR 7/3). Probably Middle Jurassic deltaic sandstone, as Wath 3 (St Mary)

Plate numbers in printed volume: Ill. 845–7

Corpus volume reference: Vol 6 p. 218-219

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Present Location

Built in above Wath 3 (St Mary), behind the jamb of the screen door

Evidence for Discovery

See Wath 1 (St Mary)

Church Dedication

St Mary

Present Condition

Broken and worn; one face visible, though partly hidden

Description

It is broken at each end and along its base, with no edge mouldings. A very large profile quadruped, facing left, has lost its head. Its tail is long, straight and diagonal. Crouched over its back is most of a canine animal in profile with a curled tail; its head is lost. The ground between the neck and the foreleg has not been cut away. The cutting is rough, especially the large beast's forelegs, and damaged. In the top right of the panel is a small triangle within a triangular frame.

Discussion

Like all the Wath material, this is poor carving, but does furnish another example of the 'hart and hound' motif: see Kirklevington 11 (p. 146, Ill. 431).

Date

First half of tenth century

References

Lukis 1875–6, 75, fig. facing; Morris, J. 1904, 389; Collingwood 1907, 282, 407, fig. e on 406; McCall 1910, 142–3; Collingwood 1912, 127; Collingwood 1913a, 173; Page, W. 1914, 395; Collingwood 1927a, 151; Morris, J. 1931, 388; Pevsner 1966, 378; Bailey 1977, 70

Endnotes

[1] The following are general references to the Wath stones: Macquoid 1883, 230; Gregson 1893, 287; Bulmer 1890, 845; Bogg [1895], 306; (—) 1896–1905d, cxliii; Morris, J. 1904, 389, 420; McCall 1910, 138, 142; Page, W. 1914, 394, 395; Morris, J. 1931, 388, 417. The following is an unpublished manuscript reference to the Wath stones: BL Add. MS 37552 no. XIV, item 806 (Romilly Allen collection).