Bewcastle Cross

On our way back from a recent bookshop date in St Boswells, we detoured off the A7 and instead meandered through the Kielder Forest to St Cuthbert's Church at Bewcastle.

There we again wondered at the Bewcastle Cross, a 7th or 8th century stone cross which stands nearly 15 feet high in the church yard. It's a few years since we first visited but it doesn't cease to amaze, with its detailed carvings on each face which are still, mostly, remarkably clear after 12 or even 13 centuries of wind and rain in this remote and exposed location.

The carvings include scenes from the New Testament, geometric patterns and inscriptions in runes.