Cross-slab in Latteragh

Situated on a low hillock in a mountainous region with a nearby early medieval castle (TN028-025001) to the W. A monastery was founded here by Odran in the sixth century (Gwynn and Hadcock 1970, 40). The death of Gilla Brénainn Ua Léimíne, erenagh of Leitir Odráin is in the Annals of Innisfallen under the year AD 1074. The site is listed in the ecclesiastical taxation of the Diocese of Killaloe in 1302 (CDI, vol. 5, 302). The Royal Visitation of 1615 described the building as ' church and chancell well' (Murphy 1914, 220). The poorly preserved remains of an early medieval nave and chancel church (TN028-025002), the nave of which is now destroyed with the chancel being reused in the late medieval period. A fragment of the E window lies in the church interior. A destroyed late medieval W doorway is located where the original chancel arch existed. It is described in the OS Letters as a two-centred doorway (O'Flanagan 1930, vol. 1, 192). Several architectural fragments (TN028-025004) have been reused as headstones in the enclosing graveyard. Four Early Christian cross-slabs (TN028-025003; TN028-025006; TN028-025007; TN028-025008), now housed in the Nenagh Heritage Centre, were recovered from graveyard (TN028-025005) during the digging of a grave in 1977 (Kelly 1988, 92-100). Displayed and stored in Nenagh Heritage Centre are a collection of four cross-slabs and quern stones. The Centre is on the west side of O'Rahilly Street, a former jail turned convent school. In the collection there is a decorated quern stone and four cross-slabs. All the slabs are from St. Odhran's Monastery, Latteragh. They are decorated with an incised cross surrounded by a single or double incised circle. Dorothy Kelly has described them in detail in JRSAI 1988, 92-100. In the basement there are seven quern stones, two of which are decorated. There is also a mortar with a sign '15th century monastic bowl' and a broken stone ring. One of three cross-slabs discovered in 1977 during the digging of a grave in the O'Brien family plot in Latteragh Graveyard (TN028-025002). A fourth cross-slab was discovered during the digging of the Berkery family plot. Both plots were located to the N of the N wall of Latteragh Church. All of the slabs (TN028-025003; TN028-025006; TN028-025007; TN028-025008) consisted of a dense, fine grained stone. Described as Latteragh 1 by Kelly and consists of a tiny slab (0.21m x 0.17m x 0.05m ) decorated with a carved equal armed cross with expanding arms contained within a broad circle. The arms of the cross nearly touch the circle within the which the cross is inscribed (Kelly 1988, 92-100) (TN020-037009). The above description is derived from 'The Archaeological Inventory of County Tipperary. Vol. 1 - North Tipperary' compiled by Jean Farrelly and Caimin O'Brien (Dublin: Stationery Office, 2002). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 22 September 2008