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| Dacre Bears | |
|---|---|
 One of the bears in the churchyard of St Andrew's | |
| Type | Statues |
| Location | Dacre, Cumbria |
| Coordinates | 54°37′56″N 2°50′15″W / 54.6321°N 2.8376°W / 54.6321; -2.8376 |
| Built | Middle Ages, though possibly earlier |
| Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Carved Bear north-east of the Church of St Andrew |
| Designated | 24 October 1986 |
| Reference no. | 252583 |
| Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Carved Bear south-east of the Church of St Andrew |
| Designated | 24 October 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1252582 |
| Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Carved Bear south-west of the Church of St Andrew |
| Designated | 24 October 1986 |
| Reference no. | 12621971 |
| Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Carved Bear north-west of the Church of St Andrew |
| Designated | 24 October 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1145532 |
  Location of Dacre Bears in Cumbria | |
The Dacre Bears are four sculptures, likely of Medieval date, which stand in the churchyard of the Church of St Andrew in the village of Dacre, Cumbria, England. Their date of construction is uncertain and their purpose is unknown. The statues are heavily eroded. Each is a Grade II* listed structure.
History and description
Historic England dates the Dacre Bears to the Medieval period and records them as each standing about 4 ft high and carved from Red sandstone. It suggests that their present placement is original, at each of the four corners of the medieval churchyard. The bears were first studied in the 18th century by William Nicolson, Bishop of Carlisle who was also a keen amateur antiquary. It was Nicolson who first deemed the sculptures to represent bears, suggesting they were a heraldic device showing the Bear and Ragged Staff emblem of the Earls of Warwick. However, the statues long predate the emblem. In the 19th century the bears were studied and described by Richard Saul Ferguson, another local antiquarian, who also served as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Carlisle. Ferguson suggested that the statues tell a story. Beginning with the bear in the north-west corner of the churchyard and moving south-west, south-east and finally north-east, Ferguson contended that the first sculpture represented a bear in repose; the second, the bear turning its head as a small, cat-like, animal attacks it be climbing onto its back; the third a struggle between the two; and the fourth, the bear, victorious and replete, with a satisfied smile on its face having overcome and eaten its enemy. A recent archaeological survey disputes Historic England's dating, suggesting instead that the sculptures predate the Anglo-Saxon period and may represent evidence of a pagan religious site. Close study of the fourth sculpture has also called into question the identification of the statues as depicting bears. The fourth, and best-preserved, of the sculptures appears to have a mane and a tail, suggesting that they may have been intended to depict lions.
Matthew Hyde, in his Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness volume in the Pevsner Buildings of England series, revised and reissued in 2010, describes the bears as; "sinister, troll-like creatures" and concludes, "their age unknowable, as is their identity - and their meaning". The bears have individual Grade II* listings.
Gallery
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First bear
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Second bear
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Third bear
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Fourth bear
Notes
References
- Historic England. "Carved Bear north-east of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (252583)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
- Historic England. "Carved Bear south-east of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (1252582)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
- https://www.ullswaterheritage.org/locations/dacre-church
- https://dacrechurch.com/?page_id=31
- https://www.ullswaterheritage.org/locations/dacre-church
- https://dacrechurch.com/?page_id=31
- https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=2146412182
- Hyde & Pevsner 2010, p. 320.
- Historic England. "Carved Bear north-east of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (252583)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
- Historic England. "Carved Bear south-east of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (1252582)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
- Historic England. "Carved Bear south-west of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (12621971)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
- Historic England. "Carved Bear north-west of the Church of St Andrew (Grade II*) (1145532)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
Sources
- Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2010). Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness. Pevsner Buildings of England. New Haven, US and London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-12663-1.