Graveslab, Abington, Co. Limerick
Co. Limerick |
Tombs & Memorials
Somewhere in Abbey Owney graveyard in Abington, County Limerick, there is a carved graveslab that nobody can currently locate.
That particular combination, a documented artefact with a known description and an unknown position, gives the place a quietly unsettling quality. The stone exists in the record but not, for now, in anyone's hands.
The slab was noted in 1907 by Seymour, who placed it close to the Barry wall monument within the graveyard. His description is precise enough to be tantalising: a raised four-point cross, its arms bound within a circle that is intertwined with them rather than simply enclosing them. This interlacing of circle and cross arms is a motif with deep roots in early medieval Irish stone carving, where the ringed or wheel cross, familiar from high crosses across the country, appears in miniature on grave markers as well as on monumental sculpture. The graveyard itself is associated with Abbey Owney, a Cistercian foundation, and the presence of carved stonework of this kind is consistent with a site of that age and character. A few loose pieces of cut stone were recorded near the slab at the same time, suggesting that whatever once stood nearby had already begun to fragment.
Visitors to Abbey Owney graveyard should be aware that the slab has not been positively identified in the modern record, so there is no guarantee of finding it. The Barry wall monument, which served as Seymour's reference point, may itself require some searching among the burial markers. Going slowly and looking at ground level is worthwhile, since graveslabs are frequently flat to the earth or partially covered by vegetation and soil accumulation over time. The graveyard is in a rural setting, and reasonable footwear will help with uneven ground. The best conditions for reading carved stonework are on an overcast day, when low, diffuse light tends to bring shallow relief into sharper contrast than direct sunshine allows.
