Runic cross in Ballaugh Old Church
In the 11th century, Olaf Liotulfson had the rune cross in Ballaugh Old Church (Manx No. 106 - popularly known as Olaf Liotulfson's Cross-Slab) made for his son Ulf by the rune master Gaut on the Isle of Man .
The crossplate once stood on a hill near the cemetery on Cronk Road, south of Crawyn in the north of the island. It was moved to the cemetery next to the former church which was east of the present one and moved to Saint Mary's Church around 1890. The position of the hill is unknown, but it is likely that it is the place of burial of the Ulf for whom the cross was erected.
The plate has a wheel head with the upper side cut away. The base of the plate was trimmed to create a tenon that would fit into a stone setting. There are records of a base stone, but its whereabouts are unknown.
The front shows a paw cross without a ring. The head shows four interlocking ribbons that end in triquetra knots in each arm . The shaft is filled with tendril patterns. To the left of the shaft is a meander pattern . The room on the right is filled with ring chains. A three-piece braid that ends in knots surrounds the head of the cross.
The reverse shows a similar cross, but the arms are connected by a wide circular ring. The cross head is worked out similarly to the other side, but here the straps end in an intertwined buckle design. The shaft shows an adaptation of these buckles and rings. The field to the right of the shaft is provided with a four-pigtail. The plaque on the left bears the runic inscription , which translates: “Olaf Liotulfson erected this cross in memory of Ulf, his son.” The Old Norse name element “Liot” is the same word as the current surname Corlett.
The two sides of the cross show the pattern of many Manx crosses, in an insular form of the Borre style , which appears around 900 AD as a ring and chain motif on the cross slabs there. Here with five different motifs by Gauts wattle . Based on the decoration style, the cross dates from the years 950–1000 AD.
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Coordinates: 54 ° 19 '48.2 " N , 4 ° 33' 12.6" W.