The Corpus: Heysham 10

Volume 9: Cheshire and Lancashire

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Current Display: Heysham 10, Lancashire

Overview

Object type: Socket-stone [1][2]

Measurements: H. min. 42 cm (16.5 in); W. 84 > 77 > 64 > 59 cm (33.1 > 30.3 > 25.25 > 23.25 in); D. 64 > 62 > 52 > 47 cm (25.25 > 24.4 > 18.5 > 20.5 in)

Stone type: Banded light grey (N7) and light brown (5YR 6/1), pebbly, poorly sorted, clast-supported, quartz sandstone. The sub-angular to sub-rounded clasts range from medium-grained (0.3 mm) to fine gravel (12 mm), but are mostly in the range medium-grained (0.6 mm) to coarse-grained (2.0 mm). Ward's Stone Sandstone Formation, Millstone Grit, Carboniferous. N.B. This is different to all the other Heysham stones.

Plate numbers in printed volume: Ills. 528-9

Corpus volume reference: Vol 9 p. 206

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Present Location

In churchyard to the north-east of the chancel

Evidence for Discovery

First certainly recorded in 1903 (Taylor, H. 1903, 93).

Church Dedication

St Peter and St Patrick

Present Condition

Heavily weathered

Description

Undecorated three-step socket-stone; remains of the bottom of the socket hole are visible in slanting light.

Discussion

Stepped bases are discussed above under Halton St Wilfrid 10 (p. 193).

Date

Uncertain; possibly tenth or eleventh century

References

Taylor, H. 1903, 92; Grafton 1904, 155; Taylor, H. 1906, 180, 385; Grafton 1909, 221; Edwards, B. 1978a, 61

Endnotes

[1] The difficulties of distinguishing between the original provenances of sculpture from this site have been emphasised by recent excavations (Potter and Andrews 1994, 104, and fig. 2). The following list therefore combines material from both St Peter's church and St Patrick's chapel.

[2] The following are general references to the Heysham stones: Robson 1850, 28; Jackson 1889, 33; Allen 1894, 4, 8; Micklethwaite 1898, 348–9; Taylor, H. 1898, 42; Howarth 1899, 9, 21; Nicholson 1899, 21; Grafton 1904; Ditchfield 1909, 117; Grafton 1909; Farrer and Brownbill 1914, 110; (–––) 1923, 288; Curwen 1925, 30; Collingwood 1927a, 15; Hogarth 1934; Bu'lock 1972, 67; Fellows-Jensen 1985, 402, 405; Crosby 1998, 30; Higham, N. 2004a, 27; Blair 2005, 216, 218, 309, 376, 457; Salter 2005, 42; Newman, R. M. 2006, 103.

The following are unpublished manuscript references: BL Add. MS 37550, items 617–46, 735–6; BL Add. MS 37551, items 72–5; Lancaster Public Library, no. PT 7; Manchester Public Library, Hibbert Ware S. MSS: Msf 091 H21, V, 64 (no. 5), 82 (no. 1); vol. 8, 98v. For the Hibbert Ware collection see Henry and Trench-Jellicoe (2005, 239–60).