Collections Online

Medium-grained sandstone monument with a visible height of 2.2m. There are five horizontally incised guidelines at the top. Inscription written across four lines in a mixture of Welsh and Latin, in capitals and minuscules. Letters coloured in red in modern times.

This monument once stood on Tir yr Abad (the abbot’s land), near Pentrefoelas, north Wales. In 1198 Llywelyn Fawr gave the land to the Cistercian monks at nearby Aberconwy. They owned over 10% of all land in Wales at the time. The inscription was written by a monk from the abbey as a compliment to Llywelyn. Many Welsh rulers endowed Cistercian monasteries.

WA_OP17.0