Cross 135[108] - Thorleif Hnakki's Cross
Thorleif Hnakki's Cross at Braddan 135[108]
This cross differs from all other Manx crosses in that rather than consisting of a relatively thin slab, rectangular or otherwise, of carved stone, this is in the shape of a four sided pillar of stone. P.M.C. Kermode in 1907, described it as -
"..cruciform in outline, consisting of a long, slender shaft and head, with limbs extending slightly beyond the connecting circle, the hollow at the intersection of the limbs pierced, being in form the most highly developed and perfect example of a "Celtic" cross".
This is the shape that people in the Celtic world now expect a cross to be. This is the shape of many of the War Memorials to be found throughout the Isle of Man. The Celtic cross.
Three sides of the shaft feature Scandinavian type decorative, interlaced dragons whilst the remaining side carries a runic inscription - THORLEIF HNAKKI ERECTED THIS CROSS TO THE MEMORY OF FIAC HIS SON, BROTHER'S SON TO HAFR. The inscription ends with the word JESUS.
Interestingly, the name of the dead youth, FIAC, is a Celtic name but those of his father and uncle, THORLEIF and HAFR, are Norse. Perhaps Fiac was a first generation Manxman with a Celtic mother.
Mrs Richards' colour treatment of her representation of this cross brings out the intricate patterns carved on this monument and she says -
"Thorleif's Cross is an outstanding example of the combination of a Celtic cross with purely Scandinavian ornamentation. It is eighty four inches high (including a twenty seven inch tongue), nine inches wide and six inches thick. The head, containing the cross itself, has a circle of usual Celtic form and the geometrical ornament follows the style of Gaut's Cross. Both faces have interlaced diagonal rings, the ring endings on one side being extended with a right angled fold. The fust, or pillar, has a cable pattern down each of the four corners. On one side are four interlaced pelleted dragons. The other side has three interlaced and one separated dragon, which runs down the full length of the edge. They are a marvellous mixture of interlacings and spirals. The arrangement of interlacings and loops, together with the splitting of the bands, is essentially Scandinavian in character. The cross is fine blue slate, possibly from Spanish Head in the south of the Island".