Cross - Wayside cross

The National Monuments Service's description

Situated on the NE side of the Dunshaughlin to Kilmessan road opposite the entrance avenue to Dunsany castle (ME037-018----) and c. 200m N of Dunsany church (ME037-019----). The cross (H 2.35m) was thought to be a fossiliferous limestone but is probably granite. It is rectangular in cross-section and consists of a shaft (dims 0.25m x 0.17m; H 1.22m), collar (dims 0.31m x 0.16m; H 0.29m) and upper shaft (dims 0.21m x 0.13m; H 0.84m) set in a rectangular base (dims 0.92m x 0.88m; H 0.14m) that also has two basins of a bullaun stone (ME037-044----). The base is on a plinth of three steps. The edges of the shaft are chamfered and the narrow sides taper. The upper shaft is a Latin cross decorated on the W side in false relief with a crucifixion at the crux and a winged ox, a symbol of St Luke, in the panel above. There is a small mortice on the top of the upper shaft. A date of c. 1600 is suggested (King 1984, 108). This cross was badly vandalised on 1 June 2013 when the shaft was broken just above the base and the head was fractured into three large pieces. The cross was conserved by Laurent Madelmont for the Dunsany estate and re-erected in August 2014 (Meath Chronicle c. 14/08/2014). (Westropp 1894, 227-9; Moore 1987, no. 1535)

Compiled by: Geraldine Stout, Michael Moore

Date of revised upload: 05 September, 2014

References

Westropp, T. J. 1894 The churches of Dunsany and Skreen, Co. Meath. Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, 24, 222-31.

King, H. 1984 Late medieval crosses in County Meath. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 84C, 79-115.

Moore, M. 1987 Archaeological inventory of county Meath. Dublin. Stationery Office.