This stone was probably carved in the 700s when Northumbrian Angles ruled the area.

The shaft bears an inscription in Anglo Saxon runes which urges its readers to pray for Hwitu. Hwitu may have been a woman from Whithorn, whose name derived from its placename hwit-erne. The stone was erected to commemorate her and to ask people to pray for her after her death.

The inscription seems to be part of the original design, with the two small crosses flanking the shaft in order to draw attention to the words.

The stone was re-used in the building of the medieval Priory church, and was found during excavations in 1968.