What is recorded here

Graveslab fragments in Kilkenny show deliberate chipping that erased a cross and border, suggesting reuse rather than accidental damage. The surviving shaft and chamfered edge preserve a life where the slab was made, buried beneath, broken, and carried elsewhere. St. Francis' Abbey holds the piece now, not the whole story.

In St. Francis' Abbey (KK019-026101-). A fragment of a limestone graveslab (L 0.26m; Wth 0.27m; D 0.11m) with chamfered side. A length of both sides survives. The graveslab is decorated with a raised cross, though only the cross-shaft is evident on this fragment. The edge of the slab have a raised border but this has also be chipped away. Both the cross-shaft and raised border were deliberately chipped away to create a roughly flat surface, presumably to facilite its reuse (Duffy 2025, no. 8). The decorated face is dressed with vertical tooling using a claw chisel (ibid.). It is similar in style to two another fragments (KK019-026538- and KK019-026540-) which may be from the same graveslab. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Medieval Christian graveslab, 12th–13th century. Its carved cross and association with St. Francis' Abbey highlight its ecclesiastical and artistic significance in the medieval monastic landscape of Kilkenny.

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