In the centre of Irthlingborough there is the shaft of a cross standing on eight steps. It has stood there, mostly in the same place, from the time it was erected sometime after 1380, having been moved only once to make space for omnibuses to be driven around it. The “cross” isn’t missing from the top – there never was one, just the shaft you see today.
In his will dated 1379, John Pyel left money to build several crosses in and around Irthlingborough and many believe that the present cross is the sole survivor.
Of its antiquity there can be no doubt. It is Early English, of an irregular octagonal shape, the subordinate faces being little more than chamfers. These are adorned with crockets of a simple and early form. The capital is enriched with trefoil foliage and is finished with a square abacus.
No wonder, then, at the profusion of photographs, postcards and drawings of this most memorable edifice. More than are show here, may be found in the archives of the Irthlingborough Historical Society and in the custody of other residents on Facebook, etc.
