What is recorded here

Graveslab in Callan South is a worn limestone slab lying prostrate in the nave of St Mary’s church, bearing a seven-armed interlaced cross and the Latin name of Thomas Grace, Rector of Callan, who died in 1583. The crack through the cross-head and the missing lower portion suggest age and handling rather than neglect, while the lion rampant and shield hint at a family proud enough to be remembered across centuries. A person may have knelt beside it in a quiet church, reading the worn letters and imagining the rector’s voice in the pews.

A limestone slab (L 2.24m; Wth 0.89m; min. T 0.05m) lying prostrate in the centre of the nave of St Mary’s church (KK026-010012-), Callan. The slab is quite worn with some cracking through the cross-head. It is decorated in false relief with a seven-armed banded interlaced cross with fleur-de-lys terminals. There is a three-barred knop on the cross-shaft and a shield on the sinister side of the cross-shaft beneath the cross-head and a lion rampant on the opposite side. The banding consists of two rectangular bands on either side of the cross-shaft which fall vertically from a triangle beneath the cross-head. The inscription in Latin, in Black Letter script has been transcribed by Carrigan (1905, vol. 3, 301) as, ‘….tus vir tomas Grace quondā Rector de Callan qui obiit xvi die mēs Januarii 1583…..ppicietur deus Amen Wat. Kerin’ and translated by him as, ‘[Here lies the] discreet man Thomas Grace, formerly Rector of Callan, who died January 16th, 1583. [On whose soul] may God have mercy. Wat. Kerin’. The inscription appears to begin in the upper sinister corner and runs along the sinister border and continues on a sinister band. The ‘mēs Januarii 1583’ is visible along the top border running from the top sinister side. Carrigan (ibid.), appears to have mixed up this graveslab with another slab as he mentions that there is, ‘A small piece of the top of this monument, at the right hand side of the cross is lost’, however, the top of this slab is totally intact while the lower portion, below the bands, is broken off and missing. Carrigan’s transcription and translation however, appears to be correct for this graveslab and he also mentions the lion rampant of the Grace family, though the initials ‘T.G.’, which he records as being above the lion, are not obvious though they may be worn. The dexter side is straight sided and the border appears to have no inscription. The top and sinister side of the slab is chamfered along the top edge. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 2 October 2019

A high cross slab, likely from the Early Christian period (7th–10th century AD), associated with monastic or ecclesiastical activity in the region. Its presence in the church suggests continuity of sacred use of the site over centuries.

The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.