Tomb — effigial in Gardens (kilkenny City By., St. John's Par.)

In a recess in the N wall of the roofless chancel of St John’s Priory, Kilkenny (KK019-026068----). An effigial tomb (chest dims. L 2.21m; Wth 1.3m; H 0.72m; mensa H 0.11m) with the effigy of an knight (L 1.39m; Wth 0.7m; H 0.2m) and his wife (L 2.3m; Wth 0.5m; H 0.33m) on separate slabs. The knight is badly damaged, the head and feet are missing. Hunt (1974, vol. 1, 194-5; vol. 2, 155, 289) describes the armour as being, ‘of Ossory type with a few minor differences. The trunk is protected by the usual pair of plates, the skirt of the habergeon appearing beneath. The arms are of plate, but the cowters are smaller than the usual Kilkenny variey and have a small rondel over the cubitus. There are articulating plates above and below. The gauntlets have short tight cuffs pointed below with fluting in chevron form on the back of the hands, giving the pieces a gothic appearance. The leg defences also have a more gothic feeling than the type, with a pronounced keel down the cuisses and greaves and are of a narrower and more elegant form than is usual. The poleyns are of simple outline, articulating twice above and below. The neck and shoulders are protected by a pisane, with besagews on the shoulder points. The sword hangs across the body from a strap over the right shoulder, as at Gowran. The hilt has a drooping cross, with disproportionately large disc-like terminations, and a small ovate pommel’. The figure of the woman is well preserved. She is described by Hunt (ibid. 195) as wearing, ‘a long gown with tubular folds and with a V-neck. The tight sleeves are buttoned nearly to the shoulder. The gown is belted with a wide girdle ornamented with quatrefoils, and over the gown she wears a mantle thrown far back from the shoulders to mid-arm. On her head is a heart-shaped head-dress, the central kerchief decorated with leafage, below which a finely pleated barbe falls from either side and beneath her chin suggesting that she was a widow. On the folds of her dress is an inscription, which is continued upon the mensa of the tomb and of her husband’s tomb’. The inscription, in raised Black Letter script, is transcribed by Carrigan (1905, vol. 3, 256) as, ‘Hic ja…. Purcell quondam……. Obiit [ ] die m…… Hic jacet et Johanna Purcell uxor eius q[ui] obiit vi die me[n]sis [ ] A. D. mccccc’ and translated as, ‘Here lies … Purcell formerly …. died…. Here also lies Johanna Purcell his wife who died the 6th of [ ] A. D. 1500’. The front panel of the tomb is carved with seven ogee-headed niches with decorated spandrels. Each niche contains the figure of an apostle, with their names carved on either side of their heads. Described by Hunt (ibid. 195; vol. 2, 289), ‘On the dexter stands St Peter holding two keys in his right hand and a book in his left, a loop of his gown held under the left arm. This figure is partly carved on the return of the dexter end-slab. The second niche has a figure of St Andrew holding his saltire cross in both hands. The third niche contains a figure of St James Major with his pilgrim’s hat, staff and purse. The central niche contains the figure of St John holding a chalice in his left hand and with his right extended on his breast. The fifth figure is St Thomas with a spear held in the right hand angularly across the body. The next figure is St James Minor with a saw in this right hand and book in his left and the last niche has a figure of St Philip holding a cloth before him, with both hands, containing five loaves'. 'The end-slab at the feet is carved with two niches containing figures of St Bartholomew and St Simon, each carved with their names on a scroll behind their heads and with their respective attributes, a flesher’s knife and a pole-axe or sparth' (ibid., vol. 2, 290). 'The head-end is carved on the dexter side with the figure of an archbishop blessing and holding a cross-staff and with decorated pointed mitre under a canopy with foliage. Unfortunately, he has no label. On the sinister is a broad panel carved with a Crucifixion, Christ crucified with a voluminous perizonium flaring out on either side between the figures of Our Lady and St John. The Virgin has a pleated gown with a large veil and clasped hands, St John on the sinister in a gown of the same pleated form with a cloak, holding one end in the right hand as if to wipe away his tears. Above the arms of the cross are four rectangles carved in relief with roses and quatrefoil floral decoration’ (ibid., vol. 2, 291). This effigial tomb can be attributed to the O’Tunney workshop (ibid. 195-6). See attached photographs: KK019-026242-_01 Effigies and front panel (S) of tomb KK019-026242-_02 Head-end (W) of tomb Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 6 April 2022