Stone cross

Stone cross in Saxon Weißig near Dresden, with a carving of a crossbow

Stone crosses (German: Steinkreuze) in Central Europe are usually bulky Christian monuments, some 80–120 cm (31–47 in) high and 40–60 cm (16–24 in) wide, that were almost always hewn from a single block of stone, usually granite, sandstone, limestone or basalt. They are amongst the oldest open-air monuments. A larger variant of the stone cross, with elements of a wayside shrine is called a shaft cross (Schaftkreuz).