This week we’d like to tell you about the Bishop Sharples Memorial, situated in the North transept. The memorial is in memory of Bishop James Sharples (1897-1853) who is buried at St Mary’s church, Great Eccleston, Lancashire. Bishop Sharples was coadjutor to the Vicar Apostolic of the Lancashire District before the restoration of the Catholic Diocesan Hierarchy of England and Wales in 1850, he laid the foundation stone of St John’s Church in 1844. Above his memorial is the original rood cross, that originally hung in the arch above the main sanctuary, it was carved by Cesar De Jonghe of Bruges and is decorated with the symbols of the four Evangelists. In front of the Bishop Sharples Memorial is the tomb of Bishop Thomas Holland (1908-99), 8th Bishop of Salford.
