Tomb - effigial

The National Monuments Service's description

Five partial funerary monuments were recovered from the River Nore during the archaeological excavations (01E0036) carried out in 2001 as part of the River Nore Drainage Scheme (Brady 2004, unpublished). These were found associated with the late medieval bridge (KK019-026070-), immediately N of the current John’s Bridge. Brady (ibid. 22) suggests that these monuments were deliberately defaced and dumped in the river by iconoclasts during the Reformation in the 1540s. The closest church is St Mary’s parish church (KK019-026115-) c. 100m to the W, with St John’s Priory (KK019-026068-) a little further, being c. 200m to the NE. Doyle and O’Meara (2004, 16-19) contend that the these monuments may have been seen as a convenient supply of stone, and were deliberately reused as part of the rubble needed to form a protective apron for the piers of the late medieval bridge.
An effigial tomb (overall dims. L 1.92m; Wth 0.49m; T 0.3m), described by Brady (ibid 45.) as a, ‘Knightly sarcophagus lid of limestone in two pieces, tapering slightly from shoulders to feet. The figure’s head is missing, but details of the shoulders and left side reveal a well executed smooth sculpture that describe a knight dressed in a cloth tunic and wearing a cloak. The remains of a sword scabbard survive at the lower left side. Details of the feet do not survive, as the slab has been repaired in antiquity and mismatching masonry inserted here. The upper surface of the figure is defaced. It is likely that his area would have been occupied with a shield that would have shown the heraldic arms. Date: fourteenth century’.
This slab is currently in storage with the National Museum of Ireland (see OF018-205----).

Reference:
Brady, N. 2004 Archaeological investigation and excavation John’s Bridge, Kilkenny: River Nore flood alleviation scheme. Excavation licence no. 01E0036. The Archaeological Diving Company Ltd. Unpublished final report.

Compiled by: Jean Farrelly

Date of upload: 17 January 2023

References

Doyle, I.W. and O'Meara, B. 2004 Medieval grave slabs recovered from the River Nore, St John’s Bridge, Kilkenny City. Old Kilkenny Review 56, 6-20.