That is already an odd circumstance, but what makes this particular stone more curious still is what is carved on its face: a cup-mark at the centre of three concentric circles, with an off-centre band running from the outer ring toward the opposite end, and herringbone patterning, formed by diagonal and transverse lines, flanking that band on either side. It tapers slightly, has a large corner broken from one end, and an unknown amount missing from the other. It is, in short, a fragment of something older than we can now fully read.

The slab is one of eleven early granite grave slabs recorded at Tully graveyard in Laughanstown, County Dublin, catalogued by Swords in 2009 and discussed by Corlett in 2014, where it appears as Slab 3. Early medieval grave slabs of this type, flat or slightly tapering stones set to mark a burial, are found at early Christian ecclesiastical sites across Ireland, though the combination of cup-marks and concentric circle decoration on a grave slab is relatively uncommon. The cup-and-circle motif has prehistoric antecedents in rock art but appears occasionally on early medieval stonework, and its presence here gives the slab an ambiguous, layered quality. Ó hÉailidhe documented it at the time of its discovery, and after a period secured to the interior wall of the church chancel, it was taken into the care of the Office of Public Works in 1989.

The slab is no longer at Tully graveyard in its original position, having passed into OPW care, so a visit to the graveyard itself will not bring you face to face with this particular stone. The site at Laughanstown does retain its early ecclesiastical character, however, and the other surviving slabs in the group remain associated with the record of the place. Anyone with a specific interest in the slab itself would need to follow up with the OPW regarding its current location and accessibility, as the notes do not record where it was ultimately housed.