Details

The monument includes a standing stone cross located about 4m north of the
north bank of the River Yare, immediately to the south west of the confluence
of the rivers Yare and Chet and about 1.2km to the east of the village of
Hardley Street. It marks the limit of the jurisdiction of the City of Norwich.
The cross, which is Listed Grade II, dates to the 16th century with some later
additions. It includes the two stepped base, the socket stone, the shaft, the
capital and the head.
The cross is aligned north east-south west by north west-south east. The steps
are square in plan and are constructed of large limestone blocks, set into a
cutting which extends 0.7m in each direction beyond the edge of the base step
and is about 0.15m deep. The base step measures 2.26m square by 0.48m high and
the top step measures 1.56m square by 0.16m high. The socket stone set on the
top step is constructed of two stones. The base stone measures 0.92m square by
0.33m high and supports the upper stone which is also 0.92m square at the base
and 0.25m high tapering in the upper part through horizontal moulding to a
square section on the surface measuring 0.88m on each side. The shaft, which
is mortared to the top of the socket stone, measures 0.4m square at the base
and tapers upwards to a height of about 3m. It is decorated with vertical
corner rolls. The elaborate capital set at the top of the shaft is square in
plan expanded upwards to an abacus, 0.4m square, and is decorated on each face
with a coat of arms. The head above this comprises a simple cross about 0.4m
high and 0.2m wide, facing north west and south east on a stepped base. The
steps, capital and head are thought to be post-medieval in date. The full
height of the cross in its present form is approximately 5.07m.
The initials `W.I.P.' are inscribed into the north west face of the socket
stone. A slate plaque, at one time attached to, and now leaning against, the
north east face of the socket stone was erected in 1971 and states that the
cross marks the ancient boundary of the jurisdictions of the City of Norwich
and the Borough of Great Yarmouth on the River Yare. It also states that the
cross probably marks the original limit of Breydon Water and it was confirmed
for Norwich by a Charter of Philip and Mary in July 1556. Inscriptions cut
into the north west and north east faces of the shaft relate to restoration
work carried out in 1676, 1820 and 1834 and a bronze plaque on the north east
face of the shaft states the cross was repaired and fenced in 1899.
The Chamberlain's Roll of 1543 records that a wooden cross was erected on the
site. It is thought that the wooden cross was replaced in 1676 with the
present cross.
The iron railings which extend 0.13m in each direction beyond the edge of the
base step, and which have diagonal spurs built into the top step, are excluded
from the scheduling although the ground beneath them is included.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 1 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

A standing cross is a free standing upright structure, usually of stone,
mostly erected during the medieval period (mid 10th to mid 16th centuries AD).
Standing crosses served a variety of functions. In churchyards they served as
stations for outdoor processions, particularly in the observance of Palm
Sunday. Elsewhere, standing crosses were used within settlements as places for
preaching, public proclamation and penance, as well as defining rights of
sanctuary. Standing crosses were also employed to mark boundaries between
parishes, property, or settlements. A few crosses were erected to commemorate
battles. Some crosses were linked to particular saints, whose support and
protection their presence would have helped to invoke. Crosses in market
places may have helped to validate transactions. After the Reformation, some
crosses continued in use as foci for municipal or borough ceremonies, for
example as places for official proclamations and announcements; some were the
scenes of games or recreational activity.
Standing crosses were distributed throughout England and are thought to have
numbered in excess of 12,000. However, their survival since the Reformation
has been variable, being much affected by local conditions, attitudes and
religious sentiment. In particular, many cross-heads were destroyed by
iconoclasts during the 16th and 17th centuries. Less than 2,000 medieval
standing crosses, with or without cross-heads, are now thought to exist. The
oldest and most basic form of standing cross is the monolith, a stone shaft
often set directly in the ground without a base. The most common form is the
stepped cross, in which the shaft is set in a socket stone and raised upon a
flight of steps; this type of cross remained current from the 11th to 12th
centuries until after the Reformation. Where the cross-head survives it may
take a variety of forms, from a lantern-like structure to a crucifix; the more
elaborate examples date from the 15th century. Much less common than stepped
crosses are spire-shaped crosses, often composed of three or four receding
stages with elaborate architectural decoration and/or sculptured figures; the
most famous of these include the Eleanor crosses, erected by Edward I at the
stopping places of the funeral cortege of his wife, who died in 1290. Also
uncommon are the preaching crosses which were built in public places from the
13th century, typically in the cemeteries of religious communities and
cathedrals, market places and wide thoroughfares; they include a stepped base,
buttresses supporting a vaulted canopy, in turn carrying either a shaft and
head or a pinnacled spire. Standing crosses contribute significantly to our
understanding of medieval customs, both secular and religious, and to our
knowledge of medieval parishes and settlement patterns. All crosses which
survive as standing monuments, especially those which stand in or near their
original location, are considered worthy of protection.

Hardley Cross is a good example of an early post-medieval standing cross with
a decorative square socket stone and a tapering square shaft. Situated
immediately to the south west of the junction between the Rivers Yare and
Chet, probably marking the original limit of Breydon water and marking the
boundary of the jurisdictions of the City of Norwich it is believed to stand
in or near to its original position. Whilst parts of the cross have survived
from early post-medieval times subsequent restorations have resulted in its
continued function as a public monument and amenity. The cross is later in
date than most standing crosses and this gives it additional interest.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Cozens-Hardy, , 'Norfolk Archaeology' in Norfolk Crosses, , Vol. 25, (1935), 311-312

Source: Historic England