Perched on the summit of an ancient hillfort, Breedon-on-the-Hill became the site of an early Mercian monastery by the late seventh century. The foundation, known in early records as Briudun, was established under King Æthelred of Mercia around 675 CE.1 Its first abbot, Hedda, later served as Bishop of Lichfield (691 CE). The monastery flourished for two centuries before its destruction in the Danish raids of the ninth century. It was not re-established until the early twelfth century, when an Augustinian priory was founded on the same site. The present church of St Mary and St Hardulph incorporates both Norman fabric and significant remains from the earlier Anglo-Saxon monastery.

Among its most remarkable survivals are a series of carved stone reliefs, embedded in the church walls. Dating from the late eighth or early ninth century, these fragments form part of a larger decorative scheme, perhaps a chancel screen, shrine, or altar front. They are carved from local sandstone in a formal, linear style characteristic of the Mercian School of sculpture, which flourished during the kingdom’s cultural zenith.

At the centre of the surviving ensemble is a high-relief figure seated within an arched niche. The figure holds a book in the left hand and raises the right in a gesture of blessing, an iconography that identifies the subject as Christ in Majesty, or Christus Magister, the divine teacher enthroned. The book symbolizes the Gospels, while the raised hand conveys the act of benediction. In the context of a monastic church, this image may also have carried an additional resonance, reflecting Christ as the archetype of the abbot and spiritual ruler of the community.

On either side of the central image are two rectangular panels, each containing three haloed standing figures framed by arcades. These are likely apostles or saints, arranged symmetrically to flank the enthroned Christ. Their simple garments and composed postures express reverence and order, hallmarks of early medieval spirituality. The composition—Christ surrounded by six attendant saints—evokes the celestial hierarchy, a vision of divine authority mirrored in the structure of the earthly monastery.

Stylistically, the carvings share close affinities with the Book of Cerne (c. 820 CE)2 and the Hedda Stone at Peterborough Cathedral. The geometric drapery, shallow modeling, and architectural framing reveal a sophisticated synthesis of Byzantine and Carolingian influences adapted by Mercian sculptors. Together, these reliefs represent one of the finest survivals of Anglo-Saxon figural sculpture in England—a vivid testament to the artistic and theological refinement of early medieval Mercia.

• 1. Preparatory to Anglo-Saxon England: Being the Collected Papers of Frank Merry Stenton pp183-186 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/396750.Preparatory_to_Anglo_Saxon_Eng...
• 2. Cambridge University Library http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/exhibitions/GreatCollections/Ll.1.10.html