Cross

The triangular marketplace was where the three principal streets met, and the market is referred to in charters of 1605 and 1679. A fragment of a cross, dated to the late 16th century, originally perhaps from the Market Square and now in the National Museum of Ireland, is described by King (1984, 109) as: Navan 1 National Museum of Ireland No. X1639. This cross has been in the collection of the Royal Irish Academy since 1849 but its original position was probably in the Market Square in Navan. Two other fragments existed in 1862 (Cogan 1862, 1, 229-30). Material: dark grey limestone from Colp. Dims shaft: H 0.45m; 0.22m x 0.21m: tenon: H 0.12m; 0.15m x 0.14m at base; 0.13m x 0.13m at top. A shaft fragment almost square in section decorated in false relief. It has a tenon on top and a small hole in the base. An inscription in Roman lettering on three faces in relief and incision. 1st: A shield with Nangle (quarterly, first and third grandquarter counter quartered, azure three fusils conjoined in fess or) and Dowdall arms impaling Herbert (per pale azure and gules three lions rampant argent a border gobony of the last and sable and a cinquefoil in chief pierced of the second). 2nd: Inscription only; the first two letter are shaped like an hour-glass and wreath. 3rd: A female figure dressed in Elizabethan fashion. 4th: A figure in a loin cloth lying sideways holding an hour-glass, three circular objects, possibly intended as skulls, and a winged head. The inscription is as follows: NANGL / AND HAR / BART /…/PESOT / I O /SVLINVS/ DEANGVLO/ THE FIRST / BARRON OF / THE NOVAN F(…) IS / (…) GIVEN / HIM BY SIR/ HUGHE/DE LACIE/ PHIL/ I PPVS.N/AIQVANDO/BARO DE/NOVAN FO/RVM AC /NVNDINA/. The coat of arms is that of Martin Nangle who died in 1585. The occurrence of a lady in Elizabethan costume confirms a date of c. 1585. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Meath' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1987). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of revision: 16 April, 2015 Amended: 29 March 2023

A market cross in a triangular marketplace, likely built in the late 16th century, with a fragment surviving; its location at the intersection of three principal streets highlights its role as a civic and commercial focus.