Sandbach Crosses

In the town square of Sandbach in the county of Cheshire can be found two stone obelisks which were completed in the 9th century, they are thought to commemorate the advent of Christianity in the kingdom of Mercia in about 653 A.D. during the reign of King Penda. The obelisks bear engravings which tell the story of the life of Christ and also Penda’s son, they were smashed in the 17th century by Puritans and then restored in 1816 by Sir John Egerton. The engravings are stll somewhat of an enigma as they have never been fully decoded.