Face 1 - Outstanding 10th century cross-slab, though incomplete. Graphic scene from Ragnarök, the last great battle of Norse pagan mythology.
Odin - recognised by his raven on his shoulder and wielding his famous spear Gungnir - is devoured by the Fenris wolf. The wolf itself is later slain, in common with everything else.
"And every living thing shall suffer death...and the Powers shall perish".
CHRIST REIGNS
Face 2 - The opposite face of this cross-slab shows a belted figure bearing a book and a cross, trampling on a serpent. Alongside is a fish (an early symbol of Christianity). This carving seems placed in significant juxtaposition to the scene of the end of the world of the pagan gods.
Christ now reigns, Odin is dead.
(source: The Art of the Manx Crosses (1977), Manx Museum & National Trust)
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| Face 1 |
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| Face 2 |
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