Saxon cross

08 May 2025

Kat Baxter, Leeds Museums and Galleries' curator of archaeology with the Saxon pendant. Believed to date from the eighth century, the gilded pectoral cross may have once been a badge of office for an important church leader or official and was unearthed last year by a metal detectorist. With one arm broken, and the central stone now missing, the cross is nevertheless a stunning example of metalwork, made from solid silver covered with a thin layer of gold leaf. In the background is a lead coffin which was buried for more than 1,600 years before it was discovered in a previously unknown cemetery site near Garforth alongside the remains of more than 60 individuals from late Roman to early Saxon periods.

Saxon cross: Kat Baxter, Leeds Museums and Galleries' curator of archaeology with the Saxon pendant.
Believed to date from the eighth century, the gilded pectoral cross may have once been a badge of office for an important church leader or official and was unearthed last year by a metal detectorist.
With one arm broken, and the central stone now missing, the cross is nevertheless a stunning example of metalwork, made from solid silver covered with a thin layer of gold leaf.
In the background is a lead coffin which was buried for more than 1,600 years before it was discovered in a previously unknown cemetery site near Garforth alongside the remains of more than 60 individuals from late Roman to early Saxon periods.

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