Our thanks must first go to Eric Cambridge, who has acted as research assistant during the whole process of assembling this work for publication. He established the computer programs for its textual preparation, formatting and checking, as well as taking responsibility for the photographic reductions. In addition we have benefited throughout from his acute and critical comments on the text. His sense of humour and his tactful liaison between us have done much to speed this volume to publication.

Almost all the photographs in this book are the work of Tom Middlemass, whose dedication to the project has enabled him to produce prints of unrivalled quality. We are deeply indebted to him for his skill and commitment. In our earlier research in the area we were greatly assisted by the photographic record compiled by the late Alan Wiper and we gratefully acknowledge his work, together with that of Margaret Firby. Other copyright photographs have been kindly supplied by the individuals and institutions listed below (p. 228). The line drawings are all the work of Yvonne Brown and we would like to thank her both for these and for her helpful comments on layout and presentation.

The expertise of the University of Durham Computer Unit has greatly eased the preparation of the text for the printer, and we are particularly grateful to Brian Lander, Roger Gawley and Bob Sheehan for their patience and interest in the project; and to Mrs. Taylor and her team of indefatigable typists in the Data Preparation Service. We owe a special debt of gratitude to Francis Pritchard, who has freely devoted many hours of his spare time to eliminating errors from our text and devising ingenious solutions to our computing problems; the resulting suite of programs will greatly expedite the production of future volumes.

David Schofield has supplied most of the geological identifications attached to the entries. The conditions under which he worked were far from ideal and the terrain over which he cycled would have taken its toll of a less dedicated scholar; we thank him for his contributions and his endurance.

The collection of the material which appears in this volume was carried out over a long period of time and our debt to friends and relations has inevitably grown over the years. Richard Bailey is deeply grateful to his wife and family for their continual interest and tolerance which has remained unshaken by hours spent in Lake District rain and in the dustier recesses of churches. Rosemary Cramp would like to thank Mary Burkett, Elizabeth Coatsworth (who compiled the bibliography for the Bewcastle cross), and those who have been specifically involved in the recording and interpreting of that monument: Robert Farrell; Raymond Page; Gerald Bonner; John Higgitt; and **Éamon Ó Carragáin. Other scholars have provided helpful comment and criticism. Among them we are particularly grateful to David Wilson, the chairman of the British Academy's Corpus committee, and other members of that committee: Peter Lasko; Henry Loyn; Leslie Webster; George Zarnecki. In addition we have greatly benefited from information and advice from others to whom we now offer our thanks: Howard Colvin; Katherine East; John Hopkins; James Lang; Mike McCarthy; Deirdre O'Sullivan; Colin Richardson; Robert Stevenson; Ross Trench-Jellicoe; Jean Ward. The assistance given by staff in the following museums has been very helpful to the project: The Abbot Hall Art Gallery; The British Museum; The Burrell Collection; Carlisle City Museum; Whitehaven Museum.

Finally, we record with thanks the assistance given to us by those incumbents of churches and directors of institutions who have these sculptures in their care. In the words of W. G. Collingwood: 'In their hands we may leave the keeping of the monuments which are the credentials of the inheritance they claim, and reminders of the duties they owe'.