What is recorded here
You are standing in Kilfenora, County Clare, where a tomb slab stands upright inside the porch door. It shows a bishop in mass vestments, holding an out-turned crozier with four knops and a native Irish crook. The bishop wears a mitre with ornamented browband, pointed shoes, and robes incised with chevron folds. Hunt dated the work to the late 13th or early 14th century. The slab once formed part of the chancel sedilia before moving into the porch of the church that occupies the old cathedral nave.
Standing upright inside the door of the porch of Kilfenora Church of Ireland church (CL016-015004-) which occupies the nave of the former cathedral (CL016-015002-). This effigial tombstone formerly formed part of the sedilia in the chancel although that was not its original location. A slightly tapering slab with an incised image of a bishop holding a crosier. Described by Hunt (1974, vol. 1, 128) as a ‘bishop …shown in mass vestments, the chasuble incised to represent orphreys of chevron form with counter chevron folds. There is a large panel of ornament on the dalmatic and the alb has a deep apparel to its lower border. The bishop wears pointed shoes. On his head is a mitre with ornamented browband and orphreys and the infulae can be seen hanging down behind his neck. He carries an out-turned crozier of Irish form, the only one depicted of this shape in the country. It has four knops and a crook of the usual native Irish form surmounted by a cresting.’ Hunt dates the slab to the late 13th or early 14th century. (Hunt 1974, vol. 2, pl. 77)
The following images have been uploaded:
CL016-015011-_01.jpg Photo of effigial tomb slab after Hunt 1974.
CL016-015011-_02.jpg Effigial tomb slab erected in porch of cathedral (CL016-015002-).
Compiled by: Mary Tunney
Date of upload: 5 September 2018
Effigial tomb, medieval period. It is significant as a rare surviving example of funerary sculpture associated with the former cathedral at Kilfenora.
The monument record does not grant public access. Check the route and ask the landowner before entering private land.
- What survives
- Recorded monument
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