Reference
Date 2001
Event ID 921918
Category Documentary Reference
Type Reference
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/921918
Slab brought to St Columba's Episcopal Church, Poltalloch, in 1928. It stood E of the track to High Barnakill, about 500m NE of the rock-cut cross No.14. It is 1.31m in visible height by 0.41m. At the top is a grooved cross, 0.34m by 0.29m, with expanded terminals which in the top and right arms appear to be forked, whereas the bottom one is flat-ended. An inscription below the cross ends in the letters TON, but the earlier ones are affected by damage at the left edge and vertical cracks at the centre.
K H Jackson read CRNA[ ]TON, for CR(VX) NA[I]TON ('the cross of Naiton'). However, the supposed 'C' is unusually angular, and is interpreted by Dr E Okasha as a damaged 'X' representing the Greek letter Chi (cf. Eigg, W25(6)). She reads [X]RI [ ]ETON, a commemorative formula meaning '(?in the name) of Christ. [ ]eton'. (Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies, 9 (1985), 63-5). Further examination suggests the reading: [X]RI RE[?I]TON ('(In the name) of Christ. Re[i]ton'). This may be a form of the early Irish name 'Rethe' or 'Rithe' (cf. O Riain, P (ed.), Corpus Genealogiarum Sanctorum Hiberniae (1985), nos.670.87 and 711.94).
I Fisher 2001.
