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The Repton Stone
Anglo-Saxon, 8th century
Derby Museum and Art Gallery
Photo by Poliphilo
Held at the Derby Museum and Art Gallery. A fragment of a cross shaft from Repton includes on one face a carved image of a mounted man which, it has been suggested, may be a memorial to Æthelbald of Mercia. The figure is of a man wearing mail armour and brandishing a sword and shield, with a diadem bound around his head. In 757, Æthelbald was killed at Seckington, Warwickshire, near the royal seat of Tamworth and buried at Repton, Derbyshire. If this is Æthelbald, it would make it the earliest large-scale pictorial representation of an English monarch.[17] Lapidge, Michael (1999). The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England. Blackwell Publishing. p. 392. ISBN 0-631-22492-0.
The earliest Saxon element of the current church is the crypt. However this is of more than one phase, and the exact dating of it is uncertain. At some point in the 8th century a simple, square chamber was constructed below ground, with a western entrance, presumably as a burial chamber. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, King Aethelbald of Mercia was buried here in 757AD after his murder at Seckington close by, so it is possible that a burial chamber was constructed for one of the most powerful kings of his day. A carved stone from this site include a slab with a carved figure and elements that appear to be of the name ‘Aethelbald’ have been associated with this king.
Source: Repton - historic capital of Mercia
