A market cross, or, in Scots, a mercat cross, is a structure used to mark a market square in market towns, where historically the right to hold a regular market, or fair, was granted by the monarch, a bishop or a baron.
History Market crosses were originally from the distinctive tradition in Early Medieval Insular art of free-standing stone standing or high crosses, often elaborately carved, which goes back to the 7th century. Market crosses can be found in many market towns in Britain. British emigrants often installed such crosses in their new cities, and several can be found in Canada and Australia.
The market cross could be representing the official site for a medieval town or village market, granted by a charter, or it could have once represented a traditional religious marking at a crossroads.
Design These structures range from carved stone spires, obelisks or crosses, common to small market towns such as that in Stalbridge, Dorset, to large, ornate covered structures, such as the Chichester Cross, or Malmesbury Market Cross. They can also be constructed from wood; an example is at Wymondham, Norfolk.
Towns and villages in the British isles with a market cross
A
Aberdeen Aberford Abbots Bromley Aldbourne Alfriston Alnwick Alston Ambleside Ashbourne Ashbourne had a market cross up to 1790. It now has a 19th century monument known as the market cross, dedicated to industrialist Frederick Wright. Austwick (Base and pillar remaining) Askrigg Austwick Aylburton
B
Banbury This is a grand Victorian replacement on the site of an earlier cross. Barnard Castle Barrow upon Humber Bawtry These two listings appear to refer to the same market cross Bedale Belford Beverley Billesdon (x2) Billesdon has two market crosses Bingham Bingley Re-erected at Old Market Hall 1984 Binham Bishops Lydeard Bodenham The stump of the market cross is close to the war memorial column Bonsall Boroughbridge Bottesford, Leicestershire Bourton, Vale of White Horse Bovey Tracey Brandesburton Brigstock Bromborough Base 1278, top 1874 Gilbert Scott Brough (Original block and socket remaining) Buckingham Square base and shaft remaining Bungay Burnley Bedlington Bury St. Edmunds Burton-in-Kendal Buxton
C
Caldbeck Carlisle Castle Combe Castle Rising Chapel-en-le-Frith These two listings appear to refer to the same market cross Cheadle, Staffordshire Cheddar Chester Also known as the market cross Chichester NHLE has two separate records for the same Chichester market cross Chipping Sodbury Chipping Warden Colne Clowne Corbridge (x2) The 19th century one The one with the (probable) Roman shaft Corby Glen Corfe Castle Coventry Crich Cricklade Culross Culworth Cumnock
D
Dalton-in-Furness Darlington Devizes Dunchurch Dundee Dunkeld Dunstable Yarn Market, Dunster
E
Edinburgh Easingwold East Hagbourne Elstow Emley, West Yorkshire Enfield Town Myddleton House gardens are normally open to the public in daytime. Epworth Eynsham
F Frome
G
Garstang Giggleswick Glasgow Glastonbury Glossop Grampound with Creed Grantham This appears to be two listing numbers for a single market cross Guisborough
H
Harringworth Helmsley Helpston Henley-in-Arden Stump. Remains of head now in Guildhall, according to listing Hereford Higham Ferrers Highburton Hillmorton Hooton Pagnell Howden Holsworthy Holt Huddersfield Hunmanby
I
Ilchester Irthlingborough
K
Keighley King Sterndale King's Cliffe Kirkby in Ashfield Kirkby Lonsdale (x2) Kirkby Malzeard Kirkbymoorside Knaresborough Steps only remaining
L
Lambourn Launceston, Cornwall Lavenham Leek Leicester Leigh, Greater Manchester Leighton–Linslade Leighton Buzzard The Leighton-Linslade and Leighton Buzzard listings appear to refer to the same monument Lerwick Lower Holker Lund, East Riding of Yorkshire Lydney Lyneham, Wiltshire
M
Maiden Newton Maltby, South Yorkshire Mark, Somerset Market Deeping Malmesbury Mansfield Mansfield Woodhouse Martock Masham Maybole Melbourne, Derbyshire Metheringham Middleham Middleton-in-Teesdale Mildenhall Milnthorpe Minchinhampton Minehead Monk Bretton Mountsorrel
N
Newcastle-under-Lyme Newport, Wales Newport, Shropshire Newsham, Richmondshire Newton Abbot North Frodingham North Kyme North Turton North Tawton North Walsham New Buckenham Northallerton Nunney
O
Oakenshaw Oakham Market Cross Old Cross, Old Glossop Overthorpe, West Yorkshire
P
PembrokePembroke preaching and market crosses, Wales Penryn, Cornwall Pontefract Poulton-le-Fylde
Q Quainton
R
Reach, Cambridgeshire Repton Ripley, North Yorkshire Ripon Rochdale Rockingham, Northamptonshire Rothesay RutherglenMain Street Rutherglen, Mercat Cross LB33558, Historic Environment Scotland. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
S
Saffron Walden Salisbury Sedgemoor Selby Shap Shepton Mallet Somerton This single market cross has two listings Spilsby St Albans Stalbridge Stamfordham Standish, Greater Manchester Stanhope, County Durham (x2) Steeple Ashton Stockton-on-Tees Stow-on-the-Wold Stretham Sturminster Newton Base with steps and pedestal Swaffham Swineshead, Lincolnshire Swinton (Berwickshire)
T
Tattershall Thornton-le-Dale Tickhill
U Uttoxeter
W
Wainfleet All Saints Wantage As of 2020 this monument was still inside the Vale and Downland Museum, Wantage. Warkworth, Northumberland Wedmore Wells West Bedlington West Burton West Malling, Kent Weston, Runcorn Whittlesey Wigtown (x2) Williton (x2)Williton has (or had) two market crosses and a churchyard cross. Winchester Witney Woodhouse, South Yorkshire Wymondham
See also Perron Tottenham High Cross Eleanor cross Bristol High Cross - now moved Glasgow Cross
Notes
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