Details

The monument includes a medieval wayside cross, known as the Trehan Cross, at
Trehan near the estuary of the River Lynher in south-east Cornwall.
The Trehan Cross survives as an upright granite 'Latin' cross, a form whose
head has unenclosed arms, measuring 0.7m in overall height. The principal
faces of the cross are orientated towards the north-east and south-west. The
head measures 0.42m across its side arms, which project 0.12m beyond the cross
shaft on either side. The upper limb projects 0.16m above the side arms, and
has a small shallow hollow in the top. The shaft is 0.39m high to the base of
the side arms, and is of chamfered rectangular section, 0.24m wide and 0.12m
thick, the wide chamfers being 0.09m wide. The limbs also are chamfered along
all edges except those around their terminal faces.
The Trehan Cross is situated at a junction on the northern edge of the hamlet
of Trehan, the site of a chapel recorded in the early 14th century. The cross
is located beside the direct route within the parish from Trehan to the church
at St Stephens by Saltash to the east, fording a tributary of the River Lynher
at Forder. Beyond the church at Saltash, this route leads to one of the major
early crossing points of the River Tamar estuary. Overlooking Forder, beside
that route and 600m ESE of this cross, is Trematon Castle, one of the
principal shell keep castles of the earls, later dukes, of Cornwall. The route
running south from this cross leads to an early crossing point on the River
Lynher estuary at Antony Passage, near which, 900m SSE of this cross, is
another chapel recorded in the early 14th century.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Wayside crosses are one of several types of Christian cross erected during the
medieval period, mostly from the 9th to 15th centuries AD. In addition to
serving the function of reiterating and reinforcing the Christian faith
amongst those who passed the cross and of reassuring the traveller, wayside
crosses often fulfilled a role as waymarkers, especially in difficult and
otherwise unmarked terrain. The crosses might be on regularly used routes
linking ordinary settlements or on routes having a more specifically religious
function, including those providing access to religious sites for parishioners
and funeral processions, or marking long-distance routes frequented on
pilgrimages.
Over 350 wayside crosses are known nationally, concentrated in south-west
England throughout Cornwall and on Dartmoor where they form the commonest type
of stone cross. A small group also occurs on the North York Moors. Relatively
few examples have been recorded elsewhere and these are generally confined to
remote moorland locations.
Outside Cornwall almost all wayside crosses take the form of a 'latin' cross,
in which the cross-head itself is shaped with the projecting arms of an
unenclosed cross. In Cornwall wayside crosses vary considerably in form and
decoration. The commonest type includes a round, or 'wheel', head on the faces
of which various forms of cross or related designs were carved in relief or
incised, the spaces between the cross arms possibly pierced. The design was
sometimes supplemented with a relief figure of Christ and the shaft might bear
decorative panels and motifs. Less common forms in Cornwall include the
'Latin' cross and, much rarer, the simple slab with a low relief cross on both
faces. Rare examples of wheel-head and slab-form crosses also occur within the
North York Moors group. Most wayside crosses have either a simple socketed
base or show no evidence for a separate base at all.
Wayside crosses contribute significantly to our understanding of medieval
religious customs and sculptural traditions and to our knowledge of medieval
routeways and settlement patterns. All wayside crosses which survive as earth-
fast monuments, except those which are extremely damaged and removed from
their original locations, are considered worthy of protection.

The Trehan Cross has survived well as a good example of a Latin cross and it
remains as a marker on its original route and junction. The location of this
cross beside a junction of routes linking several important medieval sites
nearby, both religious and secular, demonstrates well the major role of
wayside crosses and the longevity of many routes still in use. The routes
marked by this cross were also of importance on a larger scale in providing
access to the major early river crossings over the estuary of the River Tamar.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Halliday, F E, A History of Cornwall, (1975)
Henderson, C, The Cornish Church Guide, (1928)
Langdon, A G, Old Cornish Crosses, (1896)
Other
consulted 1993, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 6242.01,
consulted 1993, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 6242.02,
Title: 1:25000 Ordnance Survey Map; SX 45/55; Pathfinder Series 1356
Source Date: 1988
Author:
Publisher:
Surveyor:

Source: Historic England