That displacement is the quiet curiosity at the centre of this object's story. Two such crosses once stood together at the site, both unadorned, both likely of early Christian origin, and both now separated from the ground that gave them meaning.

The crosses are described as plain, which in the context of early Christian stonework is itself informative. Early Christian crosses in Ireland range from elaborately carved high crosses, dense with scriptural scenes and interlace, to simple undecorated forms that predate or exist outside that tradition. The Cartron cross belongs to the latter category. It was recorded by Dr J. Higgins, whose 1987 study of Connacht crosses catalogued it alongside a companion piece from the same graveyard. At some point before that scholarship, the cross was removed from its original location and transferred to the National Museum, where it has remained. The companion cross is catalogued separately, though its current whereabouts follow the same trajectory.