A wooden cross believed to have been carved in Donegal in 1704 has been featured on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow.

Sunday evening’s episode of the long-running programme was filmed at Lytham Hall in Lancashire.

The featured cross was described by antiques expert Adam Schoon as: “A dark and mysterious carved wood crucifix covered with equally mysterious symbols.”

He asked the owner how he came into possession of the item.

The gentleman who had brought the cross in for valuation explained that in his youth he had been helping with a clear out at his local church. He found the cross at the back of a cupboard and asked if he could keep it.

“I think I was immediately taken by the sort of primitiveness,” he said.

The owner thought it was made from bog oak. But expert Adam Schoon had other ideas.

“I think this is made of yew wood,” he said. “It comes from County Donegal in Ireland, probably carved by unknown craftsmen. These were carved by pilgrims and they made them predominantly in the 18th and 19th centuries.”

Among the motifs and inscriptions on the cross was the year 1704.

“I think it could indeed be from that year,” said Mr Schoon. “That year is also quite important because it was the start of the penal laws against the Catholic faith which forbade them to do all sorts of things including going on pilgrimages.”

The crucifix was inscribed with the letters INRI referring to Jesus the Nazarene King of the Jews. This was above the depiction of Christ.

There were a number of other motifs on the cross too, including symbols of the Passion such as the sponge, the spear and the scourge. The owner was however somewhat baffled by the image of a chicken and what he thought might be a lyre.

Mr Schoon explained: “This is a cockerel and that is actually a cooking pot. It is linked to an apocryphal story where Judas doesn’t want to think that Christ might come back alive.

“A cock that is cooking in a cooking pot is likened potentially to Christ coming back alive and indeed the cock does come back out of the cooking pot and crows three times.”

The owner was surprised by the item’s value. Mr Schoon said that with its wonderful history, it could sell for £500 to £800 at auction.

“Good grief,” said the owner. “Well that’s quite amazing. I thought somebody would pass me 20 quid for it.”

Since the show aired, there has been much discussion locally about the origins of the cross. Some believe that it might be associated with Lough Derg which has been a sanctuary for pilgrims for more than 1,500 years.

However, Caroline Carr of Donegal County Museum said that rustic crosses of this nature were often made by ordinary people during pagan times.

“They were not allowed to have items of worship,” she said. “And many of them had no money anyway. That is why they made their own.”

Indeed, there is a similar penal cross on display in Donegal County Museum, Letterkenny.

The exact origins of the cross featured on Antiques Roadshow will no doubt remain a mystery. Likewise, details of the journey that brought the humble wooden crucifix from Donegal to a Lancashire Church at some point during the last 315 years.