Ancient Monuments

Hathern has one ancient monument in the village,the village cross at the junction of Church Street and Cross Street - a standing stone cross of medieval and later date.

The cross which is Listed Grade II stands at the junction of two roads and includes a base consisting of four steps and a socket stone, the shaft and an ornamental head. The steps are square in plan and constructed of ashlar blocks.

On the uppermost step stands the socket stone which is square in section at the base. The corners of this large stone block are chamfered so that the top of the stone is roughly octagonal in section. Set into the centre of the socket stone is the shaft of square section at its base rising through chamfered corners in tapering octagonal section.

The lower half of the shaft represents the remains of the original medieval shaft whilst the upper portion is thought to date from the 19th century when the cross was restored. The head of the cross takes the form of a moulded capital and also dates from the 19th century. The full height of the cross is approximately 5.5m. The surface of the road immediately surrounding the cross is excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath is included.