I always admire Saltash’s Celtic Cross when I drive by, and going over to Plymouth for my Covid jab recently was no exception. It wasn’t the time to stop and take photographs, but then I remembered some I had taken when wandering around the town at the last Saltash Regatta before restrictions.
The 20-metre sculpture was erected in 2013 on the boundary between Devon and Cornwall beside the Tamar Bridge, which runs alongside the Royal Albert Railway Bridge and looks out over the River Tamar. The majestic gargantuan cross received mixed feelings from folk when first installed at the top of Elwell Woods, but I praise the Celtic design with its contemporary twist. Suddenly, I’m reminded of the graphic art card, signed by the designer and sculptor, Simon Thomas, and delve into the paraphernalia I’ve kept from those days when I owned a shop off of Fore Street where I met him. I also discover a newspaper clipping of Judy Finnegan and Richard Madeley when they officially unveiled a plaque on the structure.
Two box files are brimming with Driftwood Gifts & Art miscellany gathered over six years and I begin to become side-tracked, but tell myself to stay focused on writing my blog. Quickly, I store all the bits and pieces that were strewn all over the Word Loft and hope, in the future, that I’ll find time to use them for writing an account of my shopkeeper experiences, as planned.
Back to these days. The Cornish Cross is a welcoming sight when entering the county and, eight years on, it’s just as beautiful. In the sun, light glints off of the metallic top and, on grey days, the column’s sea-green hue created by the copper oxidization is uplifting.
A tourist attraction and an iconic landmark, the monument is a mixture of art and a great feat of engineering. I’m so looking forward to the day when I can saunter around Saltash again, enjoying its splendour at close quarters, and taking in other areas of interest, of which there are many.
Until next time.
Sue. X