Cross 92[62] Onchan Cross with Fylfot design
A Cross at Onchan with Fylfot design and two dog-headed monsters 92[62]
This cross was noted as standing in Onchan churchyard by John Feltham, an English visitor, in 1797. He described it as standing "..in the groove of a large round stone..". In 1841 William Kinnebrook published an engraving of this cross, with its distinctive Fylfot, or Swastika-like symbol, near the base of the shaft. The Fylfot was a decorative form of the Cross and was used in Christian art, including manuscripts and metalwork, and less frequently, in stonework. This engraving depicted the cross-slab set into the groove of its socket stone in what was probably its original location around 1,000 years ago..
Mrs Richards describes this cross as -
"..zoomorphic and has marvellous continuous plaiting over the whole face. It is badly worn, but enough detail is left to be able to follow the plaits. On each side of the fust are two dog-headed monsters. They are formed from spirals and their jaws are open. The long protruding tongues loop around their paws. On the bottom panel, below the cross are four spirals with their ends interlaced".
The cross was removed into the church around the end of the 19th century. Its socket stone was left in its original position in Onchan churchyard and was rediscovered in 1994.
Three of the Onchan crosses feature the strange animals which are usually referred to as dog-headed monsters. However, in earlier times they were also described as being apes, weasels or cats. More recently they were described as being a form of Manx lion. They bear a marked resemblance to the strange creatures on the Dragon Cross at Kirk Michael, 117[89], and perhaps the Onchan animals are also dragons.