Tomb - effigial

The National Monuments Service's description

In the N chapel of the medieval church at Grangefertagh (KK008-047001-). According to Carrigan (1905, vol. 2, 292-3), this chapel was built by the MacGillapatrick/Kilpatrick family in the 15th or early 16th century. This effigial tomb is described in detail by Hunt (1974, vol. 1, 166-7). The figures are those of a knight and a lady in high relief. The inscription in latin in Black Letter script is given by Hunt (ibid. 166) as, HIC JACET QUONDAM BONI DOMINI OSSIRIE JOHANNES MKYLLYFADRYK ET DOMINUS BERNARDI EJUS FILIUS. QUORUM ANIMABUS PROPICIETUR DEUS. PRO NORINA UXORE BERNARDI PROPRECARE. HIC JACET KATRINA MILOI MATER DOMINI BERNARDI FUNDATOR SCRINII, along with the translation, ‘Here lie the former good lords of Ossory John Mac Gilla Patrick and lord Brian his son. Upon whose souls may God have mercy. Here lies Katherine Molloy, mother of Brian the erector of this tomb’. The effigies are probably John and his wife Katherine, the former having died in 1468. However, the tomb was commissioned by the son Brian, who died in either 1511 or 1537, therefore the date of the tomb is prior to 1537 and is the product of the O’Tunney workshop (ibid., 167). The sides of the tomb are decorated with tracery and vaulting patterns and niches containing large foliate quatrefoils (Cockerham and Harris 2001, 155, 180; Hunt 1974, vol. 1, 167).

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of revised upload: 27 February 2017

References

Hunt, J. 1974 Irish medieval figure sculpture 1200-1600, 2 vols. Dublin. Irish University Press.

Cockerham. P. and Harris, L. 2001 Kilkenny funeral monuments 1500-1600: a statistical and analytical account. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 101C, 135-88.