What is recorded here

Graveslab in Callan South is a broken limestone slab lying flat in the church aisle, bearing the name of Philip Troddy, judge and notary who died in 1563. Its banded cross still rises in relief, but the head is gone and parts of the Latin border have shattered. What remains is enough to show that Callan once recorded its own leaders in stone, and that even a damaged slab can keep a life visible long after the person has disappeared.

Lying prostrate in the centre aisle of the nave of St Mary’s church (KK026-010012-), Callan. The lower portion of a limestone slab (L 1.32m; Wth 0.76m; T 0.17m) which has a straight edge (D 0.07m) around the top and is chamfered (Wth 0.12m) towards the base. The cross-head is missing. It is decorated with a banded cross in raised relief. The bands drop on either side of the cross-shaft and fold into the border above the stepped cross-base. There is an inscription in Latin in raised Black Letter script which continues around the border (Wth 0.12m) on the sinister and dexter sides and along the base. It has been transcribed by Carrigan (1905, vol. 3, 301) as, ‘….Philippus Troddy quondam judex ac notarius curialis ville Callanie qui obiit xv die februarii A.D. mdlxiii’ and translated as, ‘[Here lies] Philip Troddy formerly judge (seneschal?) and court notary of the town of Callan, who died Feb 15th, 1563’. When described by Carrigan the slab was more intact as he mentions a ‘cross in centre’ and ‘one of the corners, bearing the Hic jacet, has been broken off’ (ibid., 302). The latter fragment is possibly the corner fragment (KK026-010054-) which is currently lying a few meters to the W. The slab is damaged along the edge of the sinister side, some of the border, including part of the inscription, is broken off. The border on the dexter side is spalled mid-way along the surviving slab. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 18 November 2019

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