These carvings were a way of fixing a person's identity and status in permanent form, and the tradition flourished in Ireland from the twelfth century onward, particularly among the Anglo-Norman settler families who adopted it from continental and English practice.

Jerpointchurch itself takes its name from the Cistercian monastery of Jerpoint Abbey, one of the most significant monastic foundations in medieval Leinster, established in the twelfth century. The area around it became a small settlement, and the church and its burial ground served a community shaped by centuries of monastic influence. Effigial tombs in this region often bear the carved likenesses of knights in armour, ecclesiastics in vestments, or civilians in period dress, and the craftsmanship can be surprisingly detailed, recording the fashions and insignia of the medieval ruling class with a precision that few other sources can match.