ABSTRACT
This article revisits the carved socle beneath the trumeau of the west door of the abbey and considers the significance of such a skilfully fashioned sculpture in a position which is marginal and not easily seen. It has received attention in the past from scholars such as M. R. James, George Henderson, and Alberto Ferreiro, who have suggested that the narrative represents the fall of Simon Magus. This reading is explored in terms of the familiarity of the subject to the Peterborough community during the period when the socle was made. A more generic reading is also suggested in line with the contemporary practice of personifying as well as allegorizing virtues and vices. The east side of the socle is flat and devoid of sculpture in order to accommodate the doors. It will be argued that the significance of the socle and the degree to which it is associated with Simon Magus is as much to do with its position as its content; the depth and darkness of the sculpture and its location at the bottom of the composition of the west front, gives it impact as a powerful counterfoil to the church above representing Simon Magus’s arch rival, St Peter.
