Tomb - chest tomb

The National Monuments Service's description

From King (1987, 295-6): Tomb chest. 1686. This monument for Hugh Reilly and his wife Catherine Plunkett is set against the north wall in the east end of the ruined church in Kilskeer graveyard. It consists of a partially damaged tomb chest and wall plaques. The tomb cover is undecorated apart from the following incised inscription in Roman Capitals (missing letter are given in lower case): this monVMENT WAS ERE / cted for HUGH REILY OF / …EN IN THE COVNTY / of meaTH ESQ AND CATHRI/ N aliAS PLUNKET HIS WEI / f and THERE CHILDREN WHO / …DETH TO BE HEARE INTE / rred WITH THERE POSTERETY / the SAIDE MONVMENT BEING / finiSHED THE YEARE OF OUR loRD GOD 1686. The end panel is decorated with mortality symbols while the side panel has three figures in recessed niches. On the left side is a man with knees and arms bent, showing out-turned hands. The centre niche has a woman with out-turned feet and her hands flat on her chest, and on the right is a virtually naked figure with upraised hands. Above the tomb there are two wall plaques with irregularly displayed interpretations of the arms of the Plunkett and O’Reilly families. Dimensions of chest cover: L 2.02m; Wth 0.96m; T 0.08m.
(Cogan 1862-70, 1, 149; FitzGerald 1909, 650)

See the attached views of the armorial stones at the O'Reilly tomb (007), and the tomb surrounds (009) and (016).

Date of upload: 10 July, 2014

References

FitzGerald, Lord W. 1909 Kilskeer Churchyard. Journal of the Association for the Preservation of the Memorials of the Dead in Ireland, 7, 649-51.

Cogan, Rev. A. 1862-70 Ecclesiastical history of the diocese of Meath: ancient and modern. (3 vols) Dublin: John Fowler, Joseph Dollard

King, H.A. 1987 Seventeenth-century effigial sculpture in the north Meath area. In E. Rynne (ed.), Figures from the past: studies on figurative art in Christian Ireland in honour of Helen M. Roe, 283-307. Dun Laoghaire. Glendale Press.