The authors owe their primary debt to the drive and inspiration of the series' General Editor, Rosemary Cramp, whose comments over the years have been both a goad and an encouragement. Before he left the project in 1994, Eric Cambridge played a key role in providing support services for our work, and his shoes have since been most effectively filled by Derek Craig, who has laboured tirelessly to prepare our text for printing. The majority of the photographs were taken by the authors, but Derek took excellent replacements of those stones which defeated our own amateur efforts, and Judy O'Neill photographed the Crowle shaft when we were able to arrange temporary removal of the pew that encumbers it. In addition, Warwick Rodwell allowed use of his interior views of the architectural sculpture at St Peter's, Barton-upon-Humber, and Nick Hawley provided images of several of the stones from St Mark's, Lincoln, taken soon after their excavation in 1975–6. Most of the maps and diagrams in this volume were prepared for publication by Yvonne Beadnell, for whose patient interpretation of our exceptional requirements we are most grateful.

We, and the volume, have also benefited greatly from the excellent contributions made by John Higgitt on the non-runic inscriptions and by David Parsons on the runic inscription on the Crowle shaft. Bernard Worssam came to the Lincolnshire work quite late in its course, but with great commitment. He provided invaluable help – particularly critical to the themes of this volume – both in undertaking detailed geological identifications of many individual stones and (just as importantly to us) in training us in recognition of the key diagnostic features of different limestone types. Bernard himself is grateful for the advice and support offered to him by Dr John Senior of the University of Durham.

Our thanks must also be expressed to Sir David Wilson and to the members of the British Academy's Corpus Committee. Sir David read drafts of parts of the text and provided cogent and helpful comments, as did Richard Bailey, Henry Loyn and Richard Gem. The latter has been characteristically generous with his time and has guided our work on the late architectural sculpture in particular, which is such a feature of Lincolnshire material. Dominic Tweddle, author of the previous volume in the series, was also generous with his advice on comparanda. A number of individuals and their institutions have provided cheerful assistance on demand, including especially Eleanor Nanestad of the Local History Section of the Lincolnshire Libraries Service, Mark Bennet of the Lincolnshire Sites and Monuments Record, Ben Heywood of the Henry Moore Centre at Leeds, and Sian Williams curator of Llandrindod Wells Museum. Tony Page and the staff of Lincolnshire Museums have put up with our rummaging regularly in their stores in the most helpful and accommodating manner, as have the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln Minster. Mick Jones and his staff at the City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit have provided a variety of background support. Our greatest pleasure is to acknowledge indebtedness to friends, colleagues and others who have brought items to our attention, arranged access or offered other personal support. They are notably Nicholas Antram, the late Canon Peter Binnall, Lawrence Butler, Naomi Field, Pat Foster, Mr R. F. Fowkes of Coleby Hall, Frank Green, Hilary Healey, Chris Johnson, the late Nigel and Mary Kerr, Kathleen Major, Audrey Meaney, Christine Means, Elisabeth Okasha, Caroline Patterson, Warwick Rodwell, David Roffe, John Smith, Henry Thorold, Andrew White and George Zarnecki.

Finally, our work would not have been possible were it not for the help of innumerable incumbents, church wardens and key-holders across Lincolnshire and in the adjacent counties. Although our sometimes bizarre requests for light, brooms, ladders and the like caused bafflement, they collaborated (with very few exceptions) with interest, with tolerant good humour, and sometimes with a cup of tea.